On Friday, December 7th, thousands hit the streets of Tel Aviv for the annual Human Rights March, put on by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI). The march gathered more than 130 organizations that promote human rights, social change, equality, and democracy. The march marked International Human Rights Day, which is observed every year on December 10th, the day in which the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The event ended in Rabin Square with performances by several Israeli artists and a keynote speech by author and ACRI President Sami Michael.          …

The High Court of Justice upheld the procedure regarding complaints of torture against Shin Bet agents, despite the fact that this procedure resulted in no investigations after nearly 600 complaints The High Court of Justice has upheld a controversial procedure governing investigations into allegations of abuse and torture against employees of Israel’s General Security Service, better known as the Shin Bet. According to this procedure, all complaints, usually filed by Palestinians who the Shin Bet detained and interrogated on suspicion of terrorism, are first examined by a Shin Bet official, working under the professional supervision of the Attorney General’s Office. This examination…

Mukhlis Burghal is one of the Palestinian prisoners who was exchanged for Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit. His experience in Israeli jails points to the state's disregard for prisoners' human rights The Alternative Information Center has an in-depth interview with Mukhlis Burghal, one of the Palestinian prisoners who was freed in exchange for Gilad Schalit. Speaking to an European journalist who goes by the nom de plume Mikaela Levin, Burghal, who spent 24 years in Israeli prisons for throwing a grenade at a bus full of Israeli soldiers, says, [The] initial questioning is one of the most difficult moments... My head…

The following is the second part of a two-part essay. Click here to read part one. Scrutinizing the Monitor This essay is a response to the granddaddy of the GOZ’s Professor Gerald Steinberg (head of NGO Monitor and a professor of conflict resolution) who, in his recent Jerusalem Post article, "NGO transparency will protect democracy", August 19, 2010 continues to perfect his thesis that Israeli human rights NGOs are engaged in an unfair attack on an innocent and righteous Israel that must be thwarted by any means that the GOZ community deems appropriate.  Professor Steinberg leads this charge and is…