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Israeli forces arrest members of slain Silwan man’s family

19 November 2010 | Wadi Hilweh Information Center

Israeli forces arrested multiple members of the martyr Samer Sarhan’s family yesterday morning, including Samer’s brother, Ali Sarhan, Ali’s wife, and a third relative, Sultan Halisi. Ali Sarhan was on his final day of house arrest today from an earlier charge, after the police brought a number of accusations against him.

Later in the day, Israeli troops returned to Ali’s home with a canine unit and searched the premises.

One witness to the arrest, Saeed Abu Sanad, commented to Silwanic.net that “I tried to inquire about their reason for arresting Ali’s wife and they attacked and beat me.”

The wife of Ali Sarhan, brother of martyr Samer Sarhan, was released from Israeli custody later in the day after authorities probed her for information regarding her husband.

Meanwhile, Ali Sarhan’s hearing was converted from public to private, and ultimately extended Ali’s detention by ten days without offering a reason on the pretext that his file was secret. Sultan Halisi, Ali’s nephew, also received a private hearing in the Magistrate’s Court and a ten-day extension of his detention.

The charges against the two men are unknown, as the hearings were closed to the public. It is important to note that Palestinian detainees are frequently given private hearings without explanation, based on supposed security concerns by Israeli authorities.

Ali’s brother Jihad Sarhan, 44, is currently still detained in an Israeli prison, along with Ahmed Abbasi, 26, and Ibrahim Abdel-Haq, 28, on charges related to the clashes that took place after Samer Sarhan’s murder.