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Screenshot from video of the interrogation of 13 year old Ahmed Manasra, suspected of taking part in stabbings in Jerusalem in October 2015. Mix News. Published by Haaretz
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by IMEMC News & Agencies

Under the bill, which was drawn up by Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, jail sentences could be handed down to children as young as 12, though the offender would start serving the sentence only when he turned 14.

Prison sentences could be imposed on children younger than 14 only if they are convicted of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter, the draft bill states, according to Al Ray.

Israeli sources reported that, if the bill is passed into law, Israel would become one of only a few Western countries which allow prison sentences for children under 14.

The Justice Ministry started drafting the bill after the arrest of 13-year-old Ahmad Manasra, who was convicted of an alleged stabbing attempt, last month.

Under Israeli law, Manasra could not be sentenced to jail, but it allows his detention, interrogation and, then, a stint in a closed treatment facility until the age of 14.

Under current Israeli law, children below age 12 are considered below the age of criminal responsibility and cannot be subjected to criminal proceedings at all. Children aged 12 or 13 can be arrested and tried, but they can’t be sentenced to jail unless they have turned 14 by the time the sentence is handed down. Instead, they can be sent to closed treatment facilities and kept there until age 20.

Under the bill now being drafted, a judge could instead sentence the child to jail, though he or she would be kept in a closed treatment facility until the age of 14. At that point, he would be sent to prison to serve out his sentence, but only after a hearing at which the judge would have to confirm the decision to transfer him to jail.

The bill makes no distinction between juveniles convicted of a terror-motivated crime and those convicted of other crimes.

Israeli MK Anat Berko submitted a bill of her own on the issue. Her bill, too, provides for the incarceration of 12 and 13-year-old offenders in a closed treatment facility until the age of 14. However, it differs from the government bill in that it allows children under 14 to be given prison sentences only if convicted of terrorist crimes.

Yitzhak Kadman, executive director of the Israel National Council for the Child, said he opposes both bills.

“Hard cases don’t make good law,” he said. “As a result of the situation and the terrible incidents that have occurred, there’s pressure to find quick solutions. But restraint in legislation is strength, not weakness. We need to consider the ultimate ramifications of this.”
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Palestinians to Send ICC Video of Israeli Interrogation of Boy Suspected of Attack

13-year-old Ahmed Manasra allegedly took part in a stabbing attack against two Israelis in Jerusalem.

Jack Khoury for Haaretz Nov 12, 2015 5:57 PM

The Palestinian Authority will give the International Criminal Court video of the Israeli interrogation of 13-year-old Ahmed Manasra, who has been charged with participating in a stabbing attack last month.

The Palestinian news agency reported Thursday that President Mahmoud Abbas had ordered the PA’s Foreign Ministry to provide a copy of the video.

Abbas’ spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said the footage proved the sadistic cruelty of the Israeli interrogators in a blatant violation of international law. He called on the international community not to be apathetic and to take action.

In the stabbing for which Manasra has been charged, he and a relative, 17-year-old Mohammed Manasra, allegedly wounded a 13-year-old Israeli  who was riding his bicycle last month in Jerusalem’s Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhood. The boy was critically wounded and a man in his 20s was severely wounded.

That day, two young males were caught on camera holding knives and chasing an Israeli through the streets, allegedly the Manasras.

The video of the interrogation shows an interrogator yelling at the boy, who eventually breaks out in tears.