Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 145: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the detention of a person (details supplied). [22945/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I refer the Deputy to my reply of 30 May 2006 to Questions on this matter. I remain concerned about this case, which has been raised with the Israeli authorities by our Embassy in Tel Aviv. The Embassy is continuing to monitor the situation closely, in co-operation with the Embassies of other EU Member States.

The person concerned was arrested on 23 May 2005, and on 16 June 2005 the Israeli authorities ordered his administrative detention for six months. This order was renewed for a further six months in November, but reduced to four months on review in December 2005. On 20 March 2006, the detention was renewed until 20 July. An appeal against the renewal was turned down on 10 May.

The Government, and our EU partners, are very concerned about the practice of administrative detention in Israel and the Occupied Territories. We are working to ensure that these concerns are addressed in the EU's continuing political dialogue with Israel. Most recently, our concerns about administrative detention were raised at the meeting of the EU-Israel Association Council which took place in Luxembourg yesterday. In direct contacts with Israel, and in cooperation with its EU partners, the Government continues to raise its concerns about the human rights implications of Israeli security policies and the need to ensure full compliance with international law.