The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has called for the immediate release of Salah Hammouri, a French-Palestinian lawyer and human rights defender, who has been imprisoned without charges.
Mr Hammouri has been arrested and deprived of his liberty by Israeli authorities since March 2022 under “administrative detention” – a system of imprisonment without charge, trial, or time limit.
This type of detention alleges that a person plans to commit a future offence, with allegations based on undisclosed evidence.
Reports indicate that there are currently more than 730 Palestinians in administrative detention in Israel.
On 7 March 2022, Mr Hammouri was arrested without charge and placed in Hadarim Prison.
On 10 March, he received an administrative detention order for three months.
His detention was renewed for the first time on 5 June, and on 4 September, the Israeli authorities ordered a second renewal of Mr Hammouri’s administrative detention for an additional three months.
Israel’s authorities say that the order for Mr Hammouri’s detention is based on “secret” information, a claim that prevents his legal representative from accessing the evidence required to challenge the case.
Mr Hammouri’s current detainment represents a continuation of the harassment and persecution that, according to him, he has faced for years due to his work defending human rights.