UNLAWFUL CONFINEMENT: AN ESSENTIAL ISSUE IN ARAB-ISRAELI CONFLICT

Unlawful confinement, a cruel act, refers to unlawful arrest or confinement of a person without any lawful act. When considered in an armed conflict, it constitutes a war crime. The act of confining an individual unlawfully leads to gross injustice, violating the modesty and dignity of an individual. The conflict between Israel and Palestine comprising numerous incidents of unlawful confinement, include arbitrary detentions, unlawful arrests, solitary confinements, and torture of Palestinian detainees. It is very unfortunate that even Palestinian children are victimized through unlawful confinement. Such deprivations violating   basic rights of individuals stand in clear contradiction to the legislation of a nation and the law governing the international community. The Rome Statute which is the governing body of the International Criminal Court has defined unlawful confinement under Article 8(2)(a)(vii)-2. It is enshrined in the common Article 3 of the four Geneva Conventions. The unlawful confinement contradicts the Right to liberty when seen in terms of law governing the human rights. Even the International Humanitarian Law states that the civilians of a nation need to be protected by the government from the offence of unlawful confinement. Though Israel has not ratified the Rome Statute, which is the governing principle of the International Criminal Court, the International Criminal Court has ruled that it had jurisdiction because the United Nations Secretary General has accepted the Palestinians accession to the treaty in 2015. The failure of the government of Israel to protect the Palestinians from the planned attacks by the groups of Jewish supremacists involves blatant violation of the civilian rights in context of this conflict, in order to ensure speedy justice, there must be an impartial body to help the exploited Arab citizens of Israel, ensuring release of wrongfully convicted individuals besides accepting the requests immediately in case of unlawful detentions.

Keywords: Unlawful Confinement, Conflict, Palestinian, Humanitarian Law etc.