Palestinian Authority: Interrogation under torture

                          Case PAL 131198

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your urgent intervention 
regarding the following situation in the Palestine Autonomous Areas.

Brief description of the situation:

The International Secretariat has just been informed by the Palestinian 
Human Rights Monitoring Group (PHRMG), member of the OMCT 
network, of acts of torture allegedly inflicted upon Mr. Munir 
Abdulmajeed al-Hurub.

According to the information, Mr. Munir Abdulmajeed al-Hurub  was 
arrested by the Palestinian GI in Hebron on October 1st 1998.  He was 
held in Hebron for several days and then transferred to the Palestinian 
General Intelligence detention centre in Jericho headquarters, where he 
was allegedly subjected to interrogation and torture.

According to the information, the GI inflicted several kinds of torture 
upon him such as forcing him into the painful "shabeh" position and 
depriving him of sleep. He was reportedly beaten on several occassions 
and handcuffed until blisters appeared.  His feet were forced into salt 
water, and he was ordered to walk on them. 

Actions requested:

Please write to the Palestinian authorities urging them to:

i.  ensure the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Munir 
    Abdulmajeed al-Hurub and bring him before a competent and 
    impartial tribunal and guarantee his procedural rights at all times;
    
ii. carry out a full and impartial investigation into the alleged torture 
    of Mr. Munir Abdulmajeed al-Hurub in order to identify those 
    responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or 
    administrative sanctions provided by law;
    
iii.guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental 
    freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national 
    laws and international human rights standards. 

Addresses :

Yasser Arafat, President of the Palestinian Authority, Abu Khadra 
Building, Omar al-Mukhtar Street, Gaza, via Israel.  Fax : + 972 7 822 365/6 
( if voice, say "fax, please").
Freih Abu Meddein, Palestinian Authority, Minister of Justice, Abu 
Khadra Building, Omar Yasser Arafat, President of the Palestinian 
Authority, Abu Khadra Building, Omar al-al-Mukhtar Street, Gaza, via 
Israel.Fax : + 972 7 822 236.
Khalid al-Qidrah, Attorney General, Palestinian Authority, Attorney 
General Building, Yarmouk, Gaza, via Israel.  Fax : + 972 7 824 503.
Major-General Nasr Yussef, Commander of the Police Force, Al-Sarrayeh 
Building, Gaza, via Israel.  Fax : + 972 7 822 803.
Colonel Jibril Rajoub, Head of Preventive Security, Jericho, Palestinian 
Authority. Fax : + 02 9921273.
Brigadier General Ghazi Jabali, Head of Civilian Police, Gaza, Police 
Headquarters, Gaza City, Gaza. Fax : + 07 822335.

Geneva, 13 November 1998

The Human Rights Action Network, a part of Derechos Human Rights, distributes appeals on behalf of victims of human rights violations. You are invited to join the network. Please check the date of the present action and do not write if it's over a month old.