Press Release

February, 2011
Rights group Yesh Din figures shows:

9 out of 10 investigations of Israeli attacks against

Palestinians are closed with no indictment served
Most of the investigations into offenses committed by Israelis against
Palestinians and their property are closed after investigators fail to find
suspects and sufficient evidence
Human rights organization Yesh Din released today a data sheet on its monitoring of Police
investigations of offenses against Palestinians.

The data sheet includes findings based on 642 investigation files opened in recent years by
the Judea and Samaria police, based on complaints filed by Palestinian citizens of the West
Bank, that Yesh Din has been following.

The findings show that only 9 percent out of 642 investigations which Yesh Din is
monitoring, have resulted in indictments filed against defendants. The clear
majority of investigations – more than 90 percent – are closed on grounds that
suggest that the investigation has failed.

The percentage of failed investigations is exceptionally high in the case of

investigations into offenses of violence against Palestinians and damage to their
property. 78 percent of violence cases and 93 percent of cases of damage to property
were closed on grounds that suggest that those investigations have failed.

These findings indicate that the State of Israel is not fulfilling its obligation to
maintain an effective law enforcement mechanism on Israeli citizens who commit
offense, among them grave offenses, against Palestinian citizens in the territories it
occupies.

"The findings suggest a chronic failure, especially in cases pertaining to violence and
damage to property", says Ziv Stahl of Yesh Din's research department. "Only a fraction
of these cases result in indictments, and most of them are closed. This means that there is
a very slim chance that complaints filed by Palestinians for violence or property offenses
carried out by Israelis will result in indictments".

Attorney Michael Sfard, Yesh Din's legal counsel, adds that "the law enforcement
agencies' lack of ability to protect Palestinians in the West Bank is a mark of disgrace on
the Israeli society. Yesh Din's findings indicate that we have forsaken human beings who
are under our control – and this has grave moral and legal implications".

Since 2005, Yesh Din has been maintaining a database of cases in which Israeli citizens
were involved in acts of violence, theft or damage to property against unarmed
Palestinian civilians. Yesh Din monitors investigations and provides legal representation
for complainants. The monitoring is carried out in order to gauge whether the State of
Israel – via the Israeli Judea and Samaria Police - is fulfilling its obligation to protect
Palestinian citizens and their property.

Yesh Din's monitoring constitutes the only source of findings regarding the outcomes of
investigations into such offenses, as no formal Israeli official holds complete data about
these types of investigations, or their results.

For further information please contact Yesh Din spokeswoman

Dana Zimmerman, at +972-54-245-7682