Defense Minister Israel Katz boasted about signing administrative detention orders against Arabs in the West Bank, while refusing to sign orders against Jewish citizens.<\/p>\n
During a Tuesday Likud primaries conference in Ariel, Katz said that he did not believe that settlers commit terrorism in the West Bank.<\/p>\n
“Not once did I sign for them [the settlers]. But who do I sign orders for? A lot. A lot. I sign for cases of Palestinian terrorism – suspects brought by the Shin Bet<\/a> when it isn’t yet possible to put them on trial. We hold them under administrative detention orders,” Katz said.<\/p>\n “Why didn’t I sign for the settlers? Because that is not terrorism. Only someone who acts against the security of the state, someone who acts to harm [the state],” he said.<\/p>\n “On my own initiative, as soon as I realized what was happening, I canceled all administrative detention orders against settlers in Judea and Samaria.”<\/p>\n “Every incident of violence in Judea and Samaria was processed as terrorist activity. Therefore, they could hold people without a trial, without charges, without evidence, and without rights – handling and interrogating them just like terrorists, said the defense minister,” he said.<\/p>\n “I called the former head of the Shin Bet and notified him: ‘It is canceled. There will be no more of this.’ And that is exactly what happened.”<\/p>\n Under Israeli law, the defense minister holds the sole authority to sign administrative detention orders, allowing individuals to be detained indefinitely without formal charges or trial.<\/p>\n