Israel uses ‘battlefield evidence’ to prosecute Palestinians abroad
Summary
Italy arrested Palestinian activist Mohammad Hannoun on accusations of raising money for Hamas, based on intelligence provided by Israel. However, Italy’s Supreme Court called for a full review of the evidence, which included Israeli reports and unverified online information. Similar cases in Europe raised concerns about the reliability of evidence coming from Israeli intelligence when used to prosecute Palestinians.Key Facts
- Mohammad Hannoun, leader of the Palestinian Association in Italy, was arrested for allegedly raising around 7 million euros for Hamas.
- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni praised the arrests under “Operation Domino,” which involved nine people.
- Italy’s Supreme Court requested a re-evaluation of the evidence, describing it as too vague and lacking proper verification.
- The evidence mainly came from Israeli intelligence and public sources whose accuracy was not confirmed.
- A similar case in the Netherlands ended with the acquittal of Amin Abu Rashid, who was also accused of financing Hamas using Israeli-based evidence.
- UK group CAGE International criticized the use of Israeli intelligence in European courts as undermining fair legal processes.
- Lawyers refer to the type of evidence used as “battlefield evidence,” which requires strict handling rules that were not followed in these cases.
- The origin of the evidence included digital files taken from Gaza hospitals and refugee camps during Israeli military operations.
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