Release of Palestinian prisoners sheds light on controversial Israeli justice system in the occupied West Bank

The release of Palestinian prisoners by Israel, as part of a deal with Hamas to free hostages held in Gaza, has put a spotlight on a controversial practice that allows Palestinians to be detained for indefinite periods without trial or charge.

As of Wednesday, Israel had released 180 Palestinian prisoners and detainees and Hamas had released 81 hostages.

The majority of Palestinians released so far – 128 of the 180, according to information published online by the Israeli Ministry of Justice – were detained and hadn’t been charged, put on trial or given an opportunity to defend themselves. Some say they weren’t even told why they were being detained.

The Israel Prison Service told CNN that the prisoners who were released as part of the deal “were serving time for serious crimes, such as attempted murder, assault, and throwing explosives.” But information provided by the Israeli authorities reveals that most hadn’t been charged or convicted.

Israel has been operating two distinct justice systems in the West Bank since it captured the area in 1967. Palestinians living there fall under the jurisdiction of Israel’s military court system, where judges and prosecutors are uniformed Israeli soldiers. Meanwhile, Jewish settlers there are subject to civilian courts.

Fatima Shahin, a 33-year-old from the West Bank city of Bethlehem, was one of the 39 Palestinians released on Friday. Authorities accused her of attempted murder of an Israeli in the occupied West Bank, which she denies.

At the time of her release, she says she was unaware that a formal indictment had been drawn up in her case.

Shahin said that while in detention, she was denied access to a lawyer and was barred from speaking to her family, as she recovered from life-changing injuries that she suffered during her arrest.

“They accused me of carrying out a stabbing. It’s not true. They opened fire (at) me. I was hit in the spine with two bullets… I have partial paralysis. I cannot feel my legs or stand up,” she told CNN.

Before the truce came into effect last week, the Israeli Ministry of Justice published online a list of 300 Palestinian prisoners and detainees eligible for release under the exchange agreement. The document listed the crime of which the individuals were accused and information on whether they were sentenced or charged.

According to the list, a majority hadn’t been charged or sentenced for any crime.

Instead, according to the document, some were either detained or held under administrative detention, a controversial procedure that allows Israeli authorities to hold people indefinitely on security grounds without trial or charge, sometimes based on evidence that isn’t made public. Shahin was listed in the document as “detained.” The document is no longer online.

The practice is also used by Israel as a preventative measure: people are detained not for what they have done, but for future offenses they allegedly planned to commit.

Many of the detainees held under the policy have no idea why they are being imprisoned, because evidence against them is classified.