military law

People next to a mural showing Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and Jerusalem's Old City, on the separation barrier between Jerusalem and the West Bank city of Bethlehem, April 18, 2022. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

Want to dismantle Israeli apartheid? Start with this law

The crisis over an emergency regulation that applies separate legal systems in the West Bank illustrates the tangible ways apartheid can be undone.

By Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man June 8, 2022

Israeli soldiers raid a Palestinian house as hundreds of demonstrators march in the West Bank city of Hebron calling to open Shuhada Street, February 20, 2019. (Activestills.org)

‘I can’t fall asleep’: The trauma of Israeli raids on Palestinian homes

A new report by human rights groups highlights the arbitrary nature and psychological harm of the Israeli army's home invasions on Palestinian families.

By Oren Ziv December 2, 2020

Denis Goldberg and Nelson Mandela. (Courtesy of Debbie Yazbek)

A lesson in fighting apartheid from a Jewish South African dissident

Denis Goldberg, who passed away on April 29, reminded Palestinians that the world has seen their kind of oppression before — and that it can be beaten.

By Amjad Iraqi May 6, 2020

Latest

Nariman Tamimi is brought to a hearing at the Israeli army's Ofer Military Court near the West Bank city of Ramallah, January 17, 2018. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Applying the law by ethnicity: Israel’s dual legal systems explained

In the occupied West Bank, everyone is subject to Israeli military law. Unless, of course, you’re an Israeli settler. The dual legal systems — separate laws and court systems for different people in the same territory — are one of the reasons some refer to Israel’s occupation as apartheid. Video by Tal Frieden. Story editing by Michael…

By +972 Magazine January 18, 2019

Prime Minister Netanyahu making a recorded public address. (YouTube) screenshot)

Netanyahu is right: Settlements aren’t the biggest obstacle to peace

The prime minister published a video accusing the Palestinians — and the world — of ethnic cleansing for opposing Israeli settlements. Not so fast. Almost as if for sport, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu released an English video on Friday. It is just two minutes long but packed with chatter-rich material: the Palestinians are guilty of ethnic…

By Dahlia Scheindlin September 10, 2016

Much of the time spent waiting in Qalandiya checkpoint is spent in narrow, fenced lanes that resemble cattle holds. (Activestills.org)

Most Israeli Jews think there’s no occupation. So what is it?

A recent poll finds that 72 percent of Jewish Israelis believe Israel’s control over the Palestinian territories does not constitute occupation. So what do you call military rule over a captive population that didn’t vote for the army to be there? Depending on who you speak to, the word “occupation” is either the most loaded…

By Natasha Roth-Rowland May 11, 2016

Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked. (Photo by Activestills.org)

Will Jewish terrorism suspects get a ‘fair trial?’

Had a Palestinian committed the exact same crime in the exact same location, he would find himself in an entirely different justice system. Maybe ‘fair’ is relative. Israel’s justice minister on Sunday said she “hopes” that the alleged Jewish terrorists indicted for murdering three members of the Dawabshe family will receive a fair and just trial. Hopes.…

By Edo Konrad January 3, 2016

Soldiers arresting youths in Nabi Saleh, 2013. (Yotam Ronen / Activestills).

Israel must provide alternatives to prison for Palestinian minors

It’s time to advocate for the mental health treatment and education of Palestinian children detained in Israeli military prisons. Untreated post-traumatic stress disorder will only fuel their continued hatred and aggression towards the authorities. By Leah R. Platkin A painfully violent video went viral last month, showing two Israeli soldiers ordering dogs to attack a…

By +972 Magazine April 22, 2015

Abdullah Abu Rahmah in Ofer Military Court, February 8, 2015. (Photo by Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Partial win: No jail for Palestinian activist who blocked bulldozer

Abdullah Abu Rahmah is levied a fine and a suspended sentence for standing in front of a bulldozer. ‘I will continue my struggle and my protest, because it is our right,’ he says. In his sentencing hearing, the military prosecution described Abu Rahmah’s nonviolent protest as an ideological crime. By Yael Marom The Israeli army’s Ofer…

By +972 Magazine February 23, 2015

The Ofer military prison in the snow, December 15, 2013. (Photo by Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

It’s always 9:15 in the West Bank military court

As Palestinians wait for their day in military court, time stretches and blends like a cruel psychological experiment. People walk in circles to stay warm. The broken clock on the wall shows 9:15. The only ones who know what time it is are the soldiers. By Alma Biblash Sunday, Ofer Military Court, the West Bank: Around…

By +972 Magazine January 12, 2015

Israel's Supreme Court sits as the High Court of Justice, April 1, 2014. (Photo by Oren Ziv/Activestills)

Judges aren’t cogs in the occupation, they’re the oil keeping it going

A new report maps out the two separate legal systems in the occupied territories — one for Jews and one for Arabs. At a launch event for the report, senior jurists showed up and argued it’s not their fault whatsoever. Former Supreme Court Justice Dalia Dorner asked: What can we do? The answer: A lot.…

By Haggai Matar December 22, 2014

Israeli border police check the ID of a Palestinian man (File photo by Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Resource: Two legal systems — discrimination under military occupation

One of the most prominent and disturbing characteristics of Israeli military rule in the West Bank is the creation and development of an official and institutionalized legal regime of two separate legal systems, on an ethnic-national basis. The long-standing residence of citizens of the State of Israel, the occupying power, in settlements at the heart…

By +972 Resources December 22, 2014

An IDF soldier wearing sunglasses at a demonstration in the south Hebron Hills [file photo], (Ryan Rodrick Beiler / Activestills.org)

Abiding by international law — when it’s convenient

Israeli institutions seek to obtain the benefits of the international legal order while refusing to accept the corresponding burdens and obligations. By Gerard Horton For some time now the Israeli army’s Military Courts’ Unit has distributed a five-page briefing paper to foreign delegations visiting military courts in the West Bank. The briefing paper is intended…

By +972 Magazine November 24, 2014