The Project  

 v     Outreach campaign
An advertisement campaign  has been launched to inform the public both about the existence of the Hotline and their legal rights and what they should do in case of settler violence. A new campaign will be aimed more specifically at explaining to the Palestinians the importance of filing criminal complaints, even if this means having to deal with Israeli law enforcement authorities.

 v     Legal follow-up
Cases reported to the Hotline are recorded using a standard Complaint Intake Form . The PHRMG follows up on all cases reported to the Hotline, taking legal action when necessary.

 v     Informing the public
Every week, we issue a Hotline Update  detailing the most salient case(s) reported to the Hotline and the response of the police – if any.

 v     Interpreting
Furthermore, the PHRMG is establishing a database on settler violence, to provide the public with information on specific cases, as well as depict trends and patterns (Where do the attacks take place? Who are the victims? Names of perpetrators?).

 v     Legal outreach
In addition, the PHRMG is organizing “know-your-rights” educational seminars to take place in different locations throughout the West Bank, to educate Palestinians about their legal rights under both international and Israeli law.

 For more information and/or suggestions, please contact Attorney Audrey Bomse at audrey@phrmg.org

Help Stop Settler Crimes Against Palestinians

And Take Part in Bringing the Criminals to Justice

If you are a victim or witness to a criminal attack by Israeli settlers, help is available through two direct telephone hotlines that work 24 hours a day. Call one of these numbers and the PHRMG can take immediate steps to try to stop the violence, and also can help the victims and their families by following-up criminal complaints and trying to make sure that the criminals are prosecuted.
 

What to do if you are attacked: Try to carefully observe the attackers so that you can identify them later. See how old they are, how tall they are, the color of their hair. If they are driving a car, try to get the license plate number, as well as the color and make of the vehicle.

If you have a camera, try to take a photograph of the attackers. Also take
a photograph of your injuries or of the property which was damaged.
 

HOTLINE ADVERTISEMENT
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW AND DO IF YOU ARE
A VICTIM OF SETTLER VIOLENCE

The Israeli police have a duty to enforce the law and protect the lives, persons and property of Palestinians from criminal attacks by Israeli settlers. When the police fail to investigate these criminal acts and prosecutors fail to bring the suspects to trial, they violate both Israeli law and international law.

It is difficult to file a complaint and it is true that even when complaints are filed, they are routinely dismissed or ignored by the police. However, if you are the victim of settler violence and you do not file a complaint, that fact will be used by the police and prosecutor as an excuse not to act (not to investigate a crime and not to initiate legal proceedings against the criminals).

The Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group (PHRMG) is convinced that if complaints of settler violence are systematically filed with the police, this excuse will be removed and Israeli law enforcement will have only 2 choices: they will either have to take steps against the criminals, or they will stand exposed at home and abroad for their complicity. We have therefore established a Settler Watch Hotline to monitor the behavior of Israeli law enforcement authorities and to lend legal assistance to people who file and wish to pursue criminal complaints against settler criminals.

What to do if you are attacked

1. Try to carefully observe the attackers so that you can identify them later. See how old they are, how tall they are, the color of their hair and the type of car and license plate of the car they are driving. If you have a camera, try to take a photograph of the attackers. Also take a photograph of your injuries or property damage.

2. File a complaint at the nearest police station or D.C.O.. Try to first arrange for an appointment to file the complaint by calling the police station. The telephone numbers of the police stations in your area are listed below:

If you are unable to file a complaint, contact the PHRMG at our 24-hour Hotline numbers, 02-5401122 (daytime) or 054-258594 (nighttime).

3. Call the PHRMG and request that one of our attorneys assist you in pursuing your criminal complaint.
 

Settler Violence Complaint Intake Form

Palestinian Human Right Monitoring Group
Name of Caller:_____________________ I.D No.______
Date of call:_______________ M____, F_____ Age:______
Address: _____________________________________________________
Phone number:_________________________________________________
Are you the victim? _yes__no. If not, what is your relationship to victim?

Can we contact you again for additional information? __ yes ____no
Do we have permission to release this information? ___ yes ____ no
Do we have your permission to purse your complaint with the police and State’s Attorney free of charge? ___yes ____ no

Have you already filed a complaint with the police? ____yes ____no
If not, are you willing to file a complaint with the police? ____ yes ____ no
[Advise caller to get a copy of the complaint from the police.]

Date and time of incident being complained about: ____________________
Approximately how many settlers were involved? _____________________
Can you identify any of the settlers or their cars? ___yes ____no
Description(s) of settler(s) :_______________________________________
Witnesses (names, phone numbers): ________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
Were IDF soldiers present when the incident occurred? ____yes ____no

Brief description of incident/Additional comments:
________________________________________________________________________
If the incident involved your land, do you have ownership documents?

Where did you learn about the Hotline and our phone number?_____________________________________________________

Agency Immediately Contacted By Staff:___________________________
Name of Staff Worker Taking Complaint: __________________________