Last March, Canada’s foreign affairs minister Mme Melanie Joly assured Canadians she had pushed Israel to drop its planned reform of the judiciary, underscoring Canada’s support for the “rule of law”. But the case of Shadi Khouri, a 16 year old Palestinian in Jerusalem should raise questions about the ‘rule of law‘in Israel even before the proposed reforms. Read more…

Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly reported to Canadians on March 17th, that in a phone call with the Israeli minister of Justice, she pushed Israel to drop its planned reform of the country’s judiciary. Ottawa’s official readout of their conversation says that “Joly underscored Canada’s support of democracy, the rule of law and the institutions that uphold them.”

Good thoughts to be sure, but a specific incident involving the Israeli justice system and a Palestinian child, long before the planned reforms, reveal that the “rule of law’ in Israel applies to some more than others.

In October 2022, several months BEFORE the proposed judicial reforms in Israel, I wrote a letter to the minister drawing her attention to how Israel routinely treats Palestinian children.

I cited the case of Shadi Khoury, a 16 year old grade 11 student in a Quaker School, taken by Israeli military in the middle of the night from his parents home in Beit Hanina, a Palestinian neighbourhood in East Jerusalem. He was beaten, handcuffed, blindfolded and taken away before the eyes of his horrified parents. He was taken to Israel’s notorious “Russian compound” without access to a lawyer or his parents.

At the time of my letter to Minister Joly, his family still did not know what the charges were against Shadi. (One of the most frequent charges Israel uses against children is that of “stone throwing”. Punishment on conviction can go as high as ten years for throwing stones at Israeli military vehicles, twice that for throwing stones at soldiers.)

A month later, when I was visiting Jerusalem, his grandmother told me he was still in jail, without contact with his parents, waiting for a court date.

Last week, I received a personal email from his grandmother which I reprint below. I cannot say that every Palestinian child is treated this way by Israeli police and courts. But Shadi is a good student, from an educated middle class Palestinian family in Jerusalem. Look what happened (and is still happening) to him.

Dear Peter, here is the latest in the case of my grandson Shadi. Samia

On Sunday,  May 21, 2023  Shadi had a day-long court hearing.. It was the first of a series of trials where the prosecution was supposed to bring witnesses to testify against Shadi and prove, as they alleged, that he was part of the demonstration on October 12th, 2022.

Their first witness was a 15-year-old Palestinian boy called Bara’ who, as per the police, had confessed at the time of his arrest in October , that he saw Shadi participate n the demonstration. But to the surprise of the prosecution and the defense lawyers, Bara’ denied any prior knowledge of Shadi, withdrew his previous confession to police, and testified that the Israeli interrogators coerced him into confessing against Shadi. He testified that he was under psychological and physical torture and verbally abused.

As he testified, the terrified 15-year-old child was threatened by imprisonment unless he confessed that Shadi took part in the demonstration and attacked an Israeli car.

Bara’ testified that investigators would take him from the official interrogation room with recording facilities to another room without documentation. He would be threatened, prompted, and returned to the official investigation room to falsify information and lie to the recorded sessions. Bara’s original confession was full of discrepancies, raising the suspicion of Shadi’s defense lawyers.

By the end of Bara’s testimony, it became apparent that the reason behind these discrepancies was that the police coerced him to lie to entrap Shadi. What implication this will have on the judge’s ruling is still to be seen.

Another court hearing was set for another 5 months – October 23rd, where the prosecution is supposed to bring more evidence in their continued attempt to indict Shadi.

He will remain under house arrest until then, but in the meantime he will be allowed to continue going to school, as well as to  go out on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 4-9 p.m with one of those who had been approved by the court to accompany him.  That is either one of  his parents, siblings or his aunt.  

According to Defence for Children International, each year approximately 500-700 Palestinian children, some as young as 12, are detained and prosecuted in the Israeli military court system. 81% reported enduring physical beatings and 89% suffered verbal abuse.

What can readers do?

Readers who agree that Canada should stand up for all Palestinian children can write directly to the minister at: Melanie.joly@international.gc.ca. All you have to say is “Dear Minister, please don’t hesitate to call Israel on its brutal treatment of Palestinian children.” She will get the message.

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Canada Talks Israel Palestine (CTIP) is the weekly newsletter of Peter Larson, Chair of the Ottawa Forum on Israel/Palestine (OFIP). It aims to promote a serious discussion in Canada about Canada’s response to the complicated and emotional Israel/Palestine issue with a focus on the truth, clear analysis and human rights for all. Readers with different points of view are invited to make comment.

Want to learn more about us? Go to Ottawa Forum on Israel/Palestine