Judge Coerces Palestinians, Attorneys Say

NABLUS, Occupied West Bank — A military judge presiding over the trials of accused Arab rioters repeatedly told defendants he would reward quick confessions with lighter sentences, defense attorneys charged today.

The lawyers said such exhortations are symptomatic of an unjust legal system seeking to rush through hundreds of cases piled up following mass arrests in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Army officials denied allegations of summary justice, and observers from the United States backed up that assertion.

“It’s not unusual for a judge to tell a defendant that a confession would be a factor in the amount of punishment imposed,” said Amos Guiora, a military prosecutor in Ramallah. “It’s not a threat that he will get a harsher sentence, God forbid.”

Over 1,000 Detained

The army detained more than 1,000 Palestinians in a crackdown on rioting in the occupied territories that began Dec. 8. The Israeli military has killed at least 24 Arabs and has been criticized worldwide for using live ammunition.

As of last week, 500 detainees were charged with riot-related offenses, the army said. Of those, 400 were tried and half were sentenced after pleading guilty. The rest of the detainees will be tried later.

In a three-hour session in Nablus on Monday, Judge Yehoshua Halevy postponed or scheduled for trial eight cases, often acting at the request of the defense.

Youths Given Two Months

Halevy sentenced three defendants who pleaded guilty to throwing stones. Two 15-year-old boys were given prison terms of two months and the third, also a teen-ager, was sentenced to three months. Each defendant also was given a one-year suspended sentence and fined 200 shekels, or about $130.

In announcing each sentence, Halevy emphasized that confessions helped the defendants. “The court gives great weight to this, and gives lighter sentences to those who confess, as opposed to those who don’t,” he said.

Attorney Lea Tsemel, representing many Palestinian security prisoners, said those who refuse to succumb to the pressure are punished severely.