Al Mezan Center for Human Rights condemns the arrest of journalist Ayman Al Aloul and political activists Ramzi Herzallah and the prevention of lawyer visitation. Al Mezan calls for their immediate release and an investigation into the flawed procedures in their arrest. 

At approximately 5:30 pm on Sunday, 3 January 2016, a force from the internal security apparatus in Gaza arrested journalist, Ayman Ghazi Mustafa Al Aloul, 47, from his house  in the Al Sabra neighborhood, in the south of Gaza City. Al Aloul is a correspondent for a number of TV news channels. The force confiscated two laptops; one belonging to  Al Aloul and the other to his wife.

At approximately 6:00 pm on Sunday, 3 January 2016, a force from the internal security apparatus arrested political activist, Ramzi Subhi Hassan Herzallah, 27, who lives on  Al Wehda Street in Gaza City. The force confiscated his laptop and his cell phone and took him to an unknown destination. It has become clear that Al Aloul and Herzallah are being detained at the internal security apparatus office in the Ansar compound in Gaza City.

Since the arrests were initiated, an Al Mezan lawyer has  been trying to visit them, but the internal security apparatus refused, claiming that the apparatus has the authority to prevent lawyer visitation for the detainees for 48 hours, as they are under interrogation. The 48-hour period has since passed and Al Mezan’s lawyer is still being prevented from visitation. Al Mezan reaffirms that the internal security apparatus is not actually the concerned authority to arrest people.

Al Mezan emphasizes that Palestinians have the right to express their opinion under the Palestinian Basic Law and the Printing and Publication Law. Article 39 of the Criminal Procedures Law states:

“entering and searching houses is an act of investigation which may not be conducted except pursuant to a search warrant from the Public Prosecution or in its presence, either on the basis of an accusation requiring a person living in the house to be searched in light of charges of committing or participating in the commission of a felony or misdemeanour, or on the basis of strong evidence that he is in possession of items related to the crime”.

Al Mezan asserts that preventing Al Mezan’s lawyer, who is authorized by the detainees’ relatives, from visitation is a flagrant violation of the detainee’s basic rights to a fair trial and equal protection of the law under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Palestinian law also allows the detainee’s lawyer to attend interrogation, but without any interruption to the interrogation itself.

Al Mezan condemns the arrest of Al Aloul and Herzalah, particularly where there is substantial evidence that the arrests are grounded in violations of the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

Al Mezan calls for the immediate release of Al Aloul and Herzallah. Al Mezan calls on the public prosecution to investigate the arrest and detention procedures and to take legal action where the law has been violated.

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