Jerusalem: Israel’s Ramle Magistrate’s Court on Sunday reviewed the eligibility of detained Palestinian Ahmed Manasra for early release under Israel’s Parole Law of 2001, however, it did not announce a decision, the defence team for the prisoner Ahmed Manasra reported.
Ahmed Manasra’s Lawyer Khaled Al-Zabarka told reporters after the session that a parole board has reviewed the case and heard all the parties. However, the lawyer added that the court did not announce a final decision, noting that it may issue its ruling within a week.
“We called on the committee to refuse to classify Ahmed’s file as terrorism, and to transfer the file to the committee for his early release, especially since he is in a difficult health and psychological situation,” he added.
In turn, Saleh Manasra, the father of the captive Ahmed, said that his son did not attend the session on Sunday because of his poor condition, as he is being held in the Ramle prison clinic, and every day he stays there, his condition worsens.
He demanded the occupation’s advocate for the immediate release of his son, who spent more than seven years in the occupation’s prisons in difficult conditions.
On June 16, Lawyer Zabarka had confirmed, during his visit to the prisoner Manasra that there were traces of wounds along his left arm up to the wrist, as well as traces of wounds on his right arm.
During this meeting, Ahmed did not communicate visually or verbally with Zabarka, and he seemed to show signs of illness and general exhaustion.
According to the advice of the psychological staff who is following up on his case with the defence team, this situation is very worrying. They added that there is a serious and real danger to the health and safety of Manasra’s psychological and public health if he continues to remain in the occupation prisons.
In light of this, the defence staff submitted an urgent request to the Israeli prison authority to release the prisoner, Manasra, immediately, due to the deterioration in his psychological and physical health condition.
It is worth noting that a court session was held for Ahmed on April 13, 2022, in which his file was transferred to the Special Committee to consider the classification of his case until the possibility of considering the case by the Early Release Committee was decided, and accordingly, a session for Sunday, June 19 session was set.
Israeli forces arrested Ahmed Manasra in 2015 from the occupied city of Jerusalem, for allegedly attempting to carry out a stabbing attack. He was 13-year-old, and he is currently 20-year-old, and the Israeli soldiers shot him and his cousin Hassan, who was martyred on the day of his arrest.
At the time, videos were published of harsh scenes of him lying on the ground screaming and injured. The occupation soldiers also tried to pin him to the ground and abuse him. His case later turned into a global one.
This day marked a turning point in Ahmed’s life, after his arrest, interrogation, and physical and psychological torture, even while receiving treatment in the hospital. As a result, he suffered a skull fracture and serious health symptoms.
Later, the Israeli court, after several sessions, issued a verdict of 12 years in prison against Ahmed and compensation of 180,000 shekels. The sentence was reduced to nine and a half years in 2017.
