A Palestinian who was arrested at the age of 13 for allegedly being involved in a stabbing incident in East Jerusalem has been released after spending more than nine years in Israeli custody, during which time he developed severe mental health problems but was repeatedly denied early release.
Ahmad Manasra, now 23, was freed on Thursday after completing his nine-and-a-half-year sentence. He had been convicted for being present with his cousin, Hassan Manasra, who carried out a stabbing attack near the illegal settlement of Pisgat Ze’ev in East Jerusalem in 2015. Although Ahmad did not carry out the stabbing himself, he was charged with attempted murder, a fact that the courts later acknowledged without finding him directly responsible for the attack, Al Jazeera reported.
During the incident, Hassan, who was 15 at the time, was shot dead by an Israeli civilian, while Ahmad was beaten and run over by an Israeli driver, which caused severe head injuries and internal bleeding. A video showing Ahmad bleeding on the street while being taunted by bystanders went viral and drew international attention.
Following his arrest and conviction, Ahmad was subjected to harsh conditions in prison and was first moved to solitary confinement in 2021 after a reported altercation with another inmate. His family and legal representatives said he was kept in a small cell for 23 hours a day and began suffering from paranoia and delusions. He was periodically transferred to psychiatric wings of various prisons, where he received medical injections to stabilise his condition.
In December 2021, an independent medical evaluation was permitted for the first time since his incarceration. A doctor from Médecins Sans Frontières diagnosed him with schizophrenia and warned that continued imprisonment could cause irreversible harm to his mental health.
Despite repeated appeals for his early release by both local and international human rights organisations, including the European Union and the United Nations, Israeli courts consistently rejected the requests, stating he was ineligible due to his conviction on terrorism-related charges. During this time, Israeli legislation had also been amended to allow courts to prosecute children as young as 12 for terrorism offences.
Ahmad’s release took place under unusual circumstances, as he was reportedly freed away from the Nafha Prison to prevent his family from receiving him. He was found alone in the Beersheba area by a passer-by, who later informed his family. He has since been reunited with his parents, although his current health condition remains uncertain.