Vol. 472 No. 8
48 Mr. Andrews asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the fact that on 17 November 1996 the Israeli Supreme Court rejected the petition of a detainee (details supplied) to bar the general security service from using physical pressure against him; the action, if any, he intends taking in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24242/96]
The Government is aware of the case of Mr. Khadar Mubarak, who is in detention in Israel on suspicion of being a member of the Islamic militant movement Hamas and in possession of information which could assist in thwarting imminent terrorist attacks. The Israeli Supreme Court has rejected Mr. Mubarak's petition to bar the general security service from using physical pressure during his interrogation. I reiterate the Government's concern at recent decisions by the Israeli Supreme Court that secret service investigators can use physical pressure in the questioning of Palestinian detainees. With regard to the action that Ireland — as Presidency of the European Union — has taken in regard to the treatment of detainees in Israel, I would refer the Deputy to my reply to Question No. 53 from Deputy Byrne yesterday. In the context of the European Union's Euromediterranean partnership agreement with Israel, the Government firmly expects that Israel will engage in discussions with the EU on human rights issues and in these contacts the Union will continue to underline to the Israeli Government the importance of the observance of human rights, both in Israel and in areas under Israeli occupation, and the importance of including concrete steps to improve the treatment of prisoners and detainees.
