The European Union (EU) Monday night expressed deep concern about the circumstances of the detention of Jerusalem Governor Adnan Ghaith.
Office of the EU Representative in Jerusalem described in a press statement Ghaith, who was recently arrested for the 18th time since he took office and transferred this time for detention inside Israel, as “an important interlocutor”.
“We are deeply concerned about the circumstances and conditions of his detention. The EU has always called for the full respect of bilateral agreements between Israel and the PLO particularly with regard to East Jerusalem,” EU Representative Sven Kühn von Burgsdorff stated in response to a media inquiry about the case of Ghaith.
“We have also repeatedly called on Israel to respect international humanitarian law and human rights obligations towards all prisoners,” he added.
“The detention of Palestinians, who qualify as “protected persons” under Article 4 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, in prisons in Israel is in contravention of Article 76 of the Fourth Geneva Convention which prohibits the transfer of prisoners outside of occupied territory. Detainees also have the right to be informed about the charges underlying any detention, must be granted access to legal assistance, and be given a fair trial within a reasonable time or be released,” he concluded.
