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Palestinian prisoner: Shin Bet tortured me to draw confession
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Palestinians, Torture 

Did Shin Bet agents torture a Palestinian prisoner to force a confession out of him for allegedly taking part in a terrorist attack, several days before he was due to be released?

Last Monday, after Jihad Mughrabi had been behind bars for more than 100 days, a military court gave the security service seven days to complete its investigation into suspicions against him. Two days later, Red Cross officials met Mughrabi and saw that he had a head wound that had been stitched up in the hospital.

The defense attorney for Mughrabi says that Shin Bet investigators beat him because they were under time pressure to produce a confession. The lawyer says the investigators pistol-whipped his client.
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For its part, the Shin Bet says the prisoner attacked the agents, who had to use force to restrain him. The Shin Bet maintains that Mughrabi was interrogated in accordance with the law.

"He is suspected of involvement in a terrorist attack. During the investigation he assaulted two agents and caused them injuries," the Shin Bet says. "In the effort to restrain him the suspect was lightly injured and taken to the hospital. At the end of his medical treatment he was returned for a completion of his interrogation."

Mughrabi, 19, from Tul Karm, was arrested in late April on suspicion of being involved in a terrorist attack carried out earlier this year in the West Bank. During his arrest he was held in isolation at the Kishon prison near Haifa, with no charges brought against him.

Deliberations were held last Monday at the military tribunal in the Ofer camp, near Ramallah, in which the investigators asked that Mughrabi be remanded in custody for a further 15 days so they could complete the investigation against him.

But the military judge, Lt. Colonel Yoram Haniel, had reservations about the quality of evidence against Mughrabi, and gave them only seven more days to complete their investigation.

If the seven days passed without an indictment against Mughrabi, he would be freed.

Mughrabi told his attorney, Raslan Mahajne, that after the court deliberations "all hell broke loose."

Mahajne told Haaretz that Mughrabi was taken to an unknown location for interrogation where "he was offered warm food, women and alcoholic drinks. He rejected the offers because he is religious."

The attorney says that Mughrabi continued to reject all suspicions against him.

Mahajne says that at night six people dressed in civilian clothes came to the cell and began beating Mughrabi, sometimes using their pistols.

"Mughrabi collapsed and was bleeding. He was lucky not to have died from the blows to his head," Mahajne said yesterday.

Mughrabi told his lawyer that the agents took him to a hospital where his wounds were stitched, but says he cannot identify the hospital.

Contrary to the doctors' recommendations, Mahajne says his client was returned Kishon prison.

During a random visit by Red Cross officials on Wednesday, Mughrabi's condition was found to be serious. The officials informed his family, who then turned to the lawyer.

The Red Cross declined to respond to Haaretz's inquiries.
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  1.   Pallywood 04:45  |  Great White North 10/08/08
  2.   Another story with no proof 05:53  |  Doc holliday 10/08/08
  3.   Mughrabi The Jihadi Moroccan is confused with what was done 06:36  |  Genuine Tosefta 10/08/08
  4.   Beaten Palestinian 07:41  |  dee 10/08/08
  5.   The Only Good Part About Torture... 07:55  |  Yosemite 10/08/08
  6.   ofcourse he was tortured 08:10  |  rm 10/08/08
  7.   jews` inhumane treatment 08:20  |  odles 10/08/08
  8.   Prroof? The "injured" interrogators? 08:30  |  Palestinian Brit 10/08/08
  9.   Almost laughable 08:35  |  Colin Wright 10/08/08
  10.   I wish all Israelis to have a more intense contact with their 09:36  |  Andreas 10/08/08
  11.   It sounds pretty believable 10:10  |  Ulf 10/08/08
  12.   Where is the CCTV showing this didn`t happen 11:06  |  Chris Linthwaite 10/08/08
  13.   Terrorists are not entitled to the protected status of POWs. 12:19  |  Jean Van Daem 10/08/08
  14.   Torture has become fashionable 12:31  |  Natallie Durson 10/08/08
  15.   Attacked interrogators at end of detainment? 13:03  |  Aaron Levitt 10/08/08
  16.   What IF an Israeli Prisoner were to be in Palestinian hands? 13:16  |  Dolly 10/08/08
  17.   Mughrabi the Palestinian prisoner was Religious.... 14:54  |  Dolly 10/08/08
  18.   Durson I agree with you 100% 15:00  |  Whatever 10/08/08
  19.   Linthwaite-what totalitarian state are you from? 15:38  |  Arie 10/08/08
  20.   Natalie:Torture has become fashionable 15:40  |  Arie 10/08/08
  21.   PriSON 17:21  |  D 10/08/08
  22.   Where is the truth 18:32  |  Great White North 10/08/08
  23.   Natallie 18:45  |  Robert Haymond 10/08/08
  24.   To Natallie Durson #14 Torture a legitimate deterrant.... 19:01  |  Dagma 10/08/08
  25.   To D # 21 - Will that ever happen? 19:05  |  Dagma 10/08/08
  26.   Where`s the 14 year old Palestinian with camera 19:23  |  x-ray 10/08/08
  27.   "Pallywood" and "Great White North" 17:23  |  Silvienne 11/08/08
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