Lawyers for Justice

The Special Military Court in Ramallah postponed the session of those accused of killing the activist Nizar Banat until June 11, 2023, to summon the witness (W.N).

Today, Sunday, May 28, 2023, the Special Military Court in Ramallah postponed the trial session of 14 members of the Preventive Security Service accused of killing the political dissident, and the candidate for the canceled legislative elections; the martyr Nizar Banat. The session was held in the presence of the full court, the representatives of the Military Prosecution, the fourteen defendants, and the defense lawyer. The “Lawyers for Justice” group attended the session as an observer of fair trial guarantees, in addition to the presence of some colleagues representing local and international institutions, and embassies for the same purpose.   The session opened at 11:45 AM, during which the defense lawyer asked to invite the witness (W.N.) from the General Investigation in Ramallah. Also, He must bring with him a statement (H.B.), that he gave before the witness, which relates to the innocence of the first accused, according to the defense lawyer. It is also mentioned that (H.B) is a main witness to the assassination of the martyr Nizar Banat, who is currently detained in the occupation prisons.   Accordingly; The “Lawyers for Justice” group calls on local and international human rights institutions to attend the upcoming sessions to ensure that they are conducted impartially and without delay. … Lawyers for Justice  May 28, 2023z

A reminder of Nizar Banat’s session

Reminder; Tomorrow, the Special Military Court in Ramallah will hold a trial session for those accused of killing activist Nizar Banat. To inquire about the session of activist Nizar Banat, contact lawyer Diala Ayesh on 0597569016. 27.5.2023

Today, Sunday, the Ramallah Special Military Court postponed the trial of the defendants in the case of the murder of political dissident Nizar Banat until May 28, 2023.

Today, Sunday, May 7, 2023, the Special Military Court in Ramallah postponed the trial session of 14 members of the Preventive Security Service accused of killing the political dissident, and the candidate for the canceled legislative elections; the martyr Nizar Banat.     The session was held in the presence of the full court, the representative of the Military Prosecution, thirteen out of the fourteen defendants, their lawyers, the “Lawyers for Justice” group attended the session as an observer of fair trial guarantees, in addition to the presence of some colleagues representing local and international institutions, and embassies for the same purpose.   While the defense lawyer submitted to the court a medical report issued by Hebron Governmental Hospital – Heart Department dated 5/6/2023, in which it was stated that the first defendant “He came to Hebron Governmental Hospital – Department of Cardiology suffering from severe chest pains. He was examined and it was decided to perform an urgent catheterization.” Requesting the court to consider the absence of the first accused for a legitimate excuse, and in conclusion, the court decided to consider his absence for a legitimate excuse, and the session was postponed to May 28, 2023.     Accordingly; The “Lawyers for Justice” group calls on local and international human rights institutions to attend the upcoming sessions to ensure that they are conducted impartially and without delay. … Lawyers for Justice May 7, 2023    

Statement by the “Lawyers for Justice” group to the public, according to the decision of the Ministry of Economy to restrict its registration as a civil company.

Lawyers for Justice Group is following up on the decision issued against it by the Ministry of Economy in Ramallah on 26/03/2023, which prevents the renewal of the group’s registration in the corporate records as a specialized private company registered with the Ministry of Economy based on instructions from the General Intelligence Agency in Ramallah, according to what the group was told on the aforementioned date.   The group emphasizes that the Ministry of Economy informed the group of the content of the decision when the group’s  executive director reviewed the Ministry several times with the aim of issuing an updated registration certificate for the year 2023, and requested him to check with the General Intelligence ِ Agency if he wants to lift the restriction.   In this context, the group confirms that it operates as a civil company registered with the Ministry of Economy in Ramallah, in line with the decisions and laws in force regarding civil companies to provide legal services and human rights, stated under the Articles of Association of the company with the Company’s Controller.   The registration of the group as a specialized civil company comes in light of the restrictions imposed by the Ministry of Interior and the security services on the work of associations, institutions and non-profit companies registered under the laws by decree and instructions, this greatly affects the discourse and mechanism of action of associations, specialized institutions and non-profit companies working in the field of human rights defense.   The group considers that the decision of the Ministry of Economy, which was taken at the request of the General Intelligence ِِِِAgency , as it was reported to the group, is as an integral part of suppressing, violations and prosecuting human rights discourse and combating human rights , especially during the past three years, which witnessed a sharp rise in the suppression of public freedoms and constitutional rights guaranteed under the Palestinian Basic Law and  international conventions on human rights.   The group also considers that the decision of the Ministry of Economy to restrict the group and prevent it from obtaining a registration certificate for the year 2023, according to the instructions of the General Intelligence ِِِِAgency, which has no legal authority to issue such instructions, is a violation of the authority of the law and judicial oversight. Accordingly, the group filed an administrative lawsuit that was filed before the Registry of the Administrative Court on 4/5/2023 to appeal the decision of the Companies Controller based on the request of the General Intelligence, as he said.   The group affirms that the procedures and restrictions it is exposed to deviate from the context of the applicable procedures and laws that the group respects and adheres to, as stated in a statement issued by the Ministry of Economy on 14/4/2023. Rather, it comes in the context of adapting the work of civil administrations to justify security policies that aim to curb and combat the group’s activity and exclude its human rights discourse.   In this context, the group also confirms that these measures come at a time when the group is exposed to fabricated allegations about receiving financial support to finance human rights activities “with the intention of fighting the Palestinian Authority” Also, after a series of actions and prosecutions that the group was subjected to during the past years, the most recent of which was notifying the Palestinian Bar Association by the General Intelligence ِِِِAgency of its intention to summon the executive director of the group lawyer Muhannad Karajeh, during December 2022.   Accordingly, the “Lawyers for Justice” group calls on the Ministry of National Economy and the Companies Controller in Ramallah to refrain from the decision to prevent the renewal of the group’s registration in the companies register and to ignore the above-mentioned instructions, which do not include a legal basis. Rather, it only expresses the state of harassment, oppression and incitement that the group has been subjected to during the past years, which took many forms with the aim of discouraging it from performing its lofty mission in defending human rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Basic Law and international conventions on human rights, as well as  abolishing its monitoring role over the violations committed against the human rights system.   The group also affirms its commitment to the Palestinian law in force, and refuses in any way to justify the measures taken against it in the framework of applying the law, especially since it knew of the restriction procedures and justifications recently. The ministry refused in any way to give the group through its legal representative a written submission explaining the truth of what happened, and that the group knew from the media about the ministry’s justifications about correcting its legal status and what it called a financial and administrative report, in a press statement issued by the Ministry on 4/14/2023.   In conclusion, the group appreciates the positions of support and advocacy it received from human rights organizations partnering in human rights work, and the declared positions issued by them against the measures of repression and harassment that the group is subjected to, the group commends the positions of Front Line Defenders and Human Rights Watch. Also, It calls on all institutions to support the group in the illegal measures it is exposed to against its human rights discourse, and affirms that it continues its human rights and legal work in defending human rights despite all the challenges and obstacles.   Lawyers for Justice April 15, 2023

For the third consecutive time; the Magistrate’s Court in Ramallah extended the detention of political detainee Yaman Berat.

Today, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, the Magistrate Court in Ramallah extended the detention of political detainee Yaman Berat for a period of seven days, It justified this extension by saying, “The charge against the accused is one of the charges that affect public order and security, to preserve it, and to give the Public Prosecution an opportunity to complete its investigative procedures and build an integrated investigation file.” The Preventive Security has arrested Berat since February 8, 2023, and during his detention he was subjected to beatings and torture. The “Lawyers for Justice” group expresses concern about the extension of his detention, which may be related to the continuation of physical torture. Accordingly; The group condemns all political arrests, as well as violating the physical integrity of detainees, from which all international and national conventions and norms are prohibited, as it is clear in the text of Article (5) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading” on the inadmissibility of violating physical integrity.

Ramallah Magistrate Court decides to release the political detainee Abdullah Fayed.

Today, Tuesday, February 28, 2023, the Ramallah Magistrate Court issued a decision to release political detainee Abdullah Fayed, after his family fulfilled the personal guarantee procedures of one thousand Jordanian dinars, which the court approved as a precondition for issuing the release decision. The Public Prosecution had interrogated Fayed about one of the charges that are usually used against detainees on the basis of political and partisan pluralism, in order to justify their arrest. It is noteworthy that Fayed had been arrested by the Preventive Security forces since January 27, 2023. … Lawyers for Justice February 28, 2023

Yesterday, Sunday, the Special Military Court in Ramallah postponed the trial of the defendants in the case of the murder of political dissident Nizar Banat until March 13, 2023.

Yesterday, Sunday, February 26, 2023, a session was held in the Special Military Court in Ramallah, for those accused of killing the political opponent and candidate for the canceled legislative elections, the martyr Nizar Banat. The session was held in the presence of the full court, the representative of the Military Prosecution, and thirteen of the fourteen defendants. The “Lawyers for Justice” group attended the session as an observer of fair trial guarantees, in addition to the presence of some colleagues representing local and international institutions for the same purpose. The group noted the absence of the defense lawyer due to a comprehensive strike by the Bar Association, as well as the absence of the fourteenth defendant (Y.A), whose absence was justified by the Military Prosecution by the death of one of his relatives. Based on the foregoing, the court postponed the case until March 13, 2023 due to the strike in the Bar Association, provided that the fourteenth defendant and his lawyer are notified of the date of the next session. … Lawyers for Justice February 27, 2023

“Ongoing Crisis” The Systematic Nature of the Suppression of Freedoms in the West Bank/ The summary

The “Lawyers for Justice” group Annual Report 2021-2022  “Ongoing Crisis”  The Systematic Nature of the Suppression of Freedoms in the West Bank The summary The year 2021 marked a qualitative difference in the human rights situation in the West Bank; the pace of violations escalated dramatically, especially after the assassination of the political critic “Nizar Banat” by forces from the security agencies, the techniques used by the security agencies to suppress public rights and freedoms varied, reaching the highest levels of repression. Lawyers for Justice followed up the deterioration of public rights and freedoms in the West Bank during the year,  and the harassment, assault and repression that citizens were subjected to due to their practices of those rights. Accordingly; This report deals with civil and political rights in  international conventions compared to Palestinian national legislation, these include the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the right to peaceful assembly, the right to life, the right to physical and psychological integrity, the right to participate in political life, and the right to litigation and fair trial guarantees, it also reviews the reality of exercising those rights in the occupied West Bank. The group monitored and documented all the cases it followed, in addition to the cases that had a great resonance and impact on the Palestinian street, including the trial sessions of the late “Banat” in the annual report for the second year since the declaration of the state of emergency, which covers the period from (March 2021) to (March 2022), where the number of cases of political arrests increased significantly, and all peaceful demonstrations and assemblies were suppressed, and the method of threats and extortion was used against demonstrators, both males and females, the report also dealt with the harassment and distortion that the group was subjected to, with the aim of hindering its work in protecting human rights, the report also highlighted the continuous targeting of activists and human rights defenders, whether in arrests or summonses by the security agencies.

The “Lawyers for Justice” group condemns the massacre committed by the occupation forces against our people in Nablus, in which eleven martyrs were martyred.

The “Lawyers for Justice” group  condemns the massacre committed by the occupying forces against our people in the centre of the occupied city of Nablus this afternoon, the group mourns the eleven martyrs who were martyred in the crime committed by the occupying forces, and wishes a speedy recovery for tens of those wounded as a result of the attack, which lasted for several hours. The group asserts that this attack comes in the context of the ongoing war waged by the colonial war machine against our people to prevent them from exercising their right to self-determination guaranteed under international human rights conventions, which emphasises the legitimacy of resisting the occupation, which was also emphasised by the United Nations General Assembly in many resolutions. In the face of these ongoing crimes against our people, the group deplores the international community’s continued silence and standing by the “occupying state” while ignoring and denying the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination, the group also emphasises the legitimacy of legitimate acts within the framework of self-determ   … Lawyers for Justice February 22, 2023  

Cancellation of tomorrow’s press conference

At the outset; “Lawyers for Justice” group mourns the martyrs of the city of Nablus who were martyred this afternoon, and wishes the injured a speedy recovery. due to the painful crime committed by the occupation against our people, we decided to cancel the press conference scheduled for tomorrow, in which the annual report for the second year after the declaration of the state of emergency was supposed to be published, entitled “The Ongoing Crisis and the Systematic Nature of Repression of Freedoms in the West Bank”. Accordingly; The group will only publish an electronic version of the report on its website. … Lawyers for Justice February 22, 2023