Israeli prosecutors have charged 12 prison guards with involuntary manslaughter after a Palestinian detainee was allegedly beaten to death in his cell.
In an indictment filed with the District Court in Beersheva, seen by the JC, the Southern District Attorney’s Office alleged that officers from the Israel Prison Service administered a fatal beating to “security prisoner” Thaer Abu Asab at the Ketziot detention centre on November 18, 2023.
Asab was a Fatah member who had been sentenced to 25 years for attempted murder in 2005, according to Hebrew media.
Per the filing, the defendants took part in an assault against Asab and several other prisoners, ordered by their commanding officer.
Following the alleged attack, Asab was found unresponsive in his cell and pronounced dead at around 10.20pm that evening.
According to prosecutors, the assault inflicted multiple broken ribs and a ruptured heart muscle, resulting in fatal heart failure.
“The defendants, in their actions described in the facts above, together, unlawfully inflicted serious injuries on the deceased while carrying a cold weapon (clubs) and when two or more people were present who conspired to commit the act by one or more of them, recklessly caused the death of the deceased, and inflicted serious injuries on prisoners when two or more people were present who conspired to commit the act by one or more of them,” the indictment stated.
It also alleged that some of the defendants attempted to coordinate their stories prior to police interviews to give a false account of what occurred.
All 12 have been charged with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated serious assault and aggravated actual sabotage. The latter charge usually relates to attempts to interfere with digital records or recording equipment to hide other criminal offences, though the indictment did not specify the details in this case.
Two of the defendants were also charged with impeachment during an investigation in connection with allegations that they attempted to induce either one of their fellow defendants or a witness to alter or retract their testimony.
Commenting on the indictment, the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel said: “In a normal reality, this decision should have been the first step toward bringing the truth to light and achieving justice for the victims – and full justice for the accused.
“However, as long as Israel pursues a policy in which prisoners are denied basic rights, and government ministers are photographed glibly glorifying their own humiliation and dehumanisation, it is highly doubtful that this can be achieved.”
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