The Public Prosecution's Supervision of the Police Officers

Date 2018-08-14

LOCATION West Bank

His Excellency attorney general, Dr. Ahmad Barak

Subject: The Public Prosecution’s supervision over police officers

MUSAWA - The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession extend their warmest greetings to you, noting that we have received a written complaint from the lawyer, Mohammad Al-Hreini, stating that on 8/8/2018 his client Dr. Ahmad Hend has been attacked by one of the security guards who work for the police during his family’s celebration of their daughter’s success in high school.

The lawyer also added that the police officer who committed the attack has strangled the victim’s neck and beat him on the head with his gun several times which caused him to faint as he was injured and suffered from a severe bleeding what got him admitted to the hospital to receive treatment. The lawyer noted that a complaint was filed to the military intelligence service which in turn did not arrest the defendant till now arguing that the police refrains from delivering its police officers considering the arguments over the law applicable to the police. After that, the complainant has filed another complaint to Ramallah’s civil prosecution which in turn said that the case is under the remit of the military prosecution as the police officer was doing his job when the crime was committed.

With reference to the constitutional interpretation No. 1/2017 issued by the supreme constitutional court which stated that “The legal nature of the police is a disciplined force with a special nature that has civil jurisdiction”, and with taking into consideration that the in-lieu-of law No. (23) Of 2017 has subdued police officers to the current code of criminal procedures, and depending on the sixth article of this law which provides for “The police officers are granted the powers of judicial control while carrying out their duties, each within their competence, and according to the provisions of the current code of criminal procedures, they operate with their capacity as a judicial police under the supervision of the attorney general is the head of the judicial police”.

Therefore, we at MUSAWA ask you to read our memo with careful interest and to take the necessary legal action that ensures investigating the complaint and holding the police officer who committed the attack responsible for what did duly. MUSAWA hopes your Excellency to keep us updated on the taken action and its outcomes.

With all due respect

Issued on 14/8/2018 Legal Monitoring Officer
Adv. Angham Mansour