Tal Yinon Dardik, who is being held in administrative detention, is demanding that the Defense Ministry and the Israel Security Agency (ISA) issue a public clarification and apology over reports that identified him as a central suspect in an alleged attack on Palestinians.
In a warning letter sent by Attorney Menashe Yado of the Honenu legal aid organization, Dardik argues that information leaked to the media falsely portrayed him as a key suspect in the incident and was intended to damage his reputation while retrospectively justifying his continued administrative detention.
According to the letter, the investigation itself does not support the claims made in the reports. Yado wrote that five suspects were arrested and questioned for approximately two weeks in connection with the alleged incident in Khirbat Humsa, while Dardik was questioned for less than an hour on the same day before being released without restrictions.
The attorney argued that the brief questioning indicates there was, at most, a general suspicion that did not justify keeping Dardik in custody for investigative purposes. He alleged that the subsequent reports misleadingly elevated that suspicion in an effort to justify the administrative detention order.
The letter also states that during a visit by his attorney, Dardik denied any involvement in the incident and said he had not been present at the scene. Yado wrote that there is no indication the security authorities possess evidence contradicting that account.
Yado further accused the security establishment of attempting to undermine Dardik's public campaign against administrative detention, noting that he is currently on a hunger strike. The letter also alleges that, in addition to media leaks, security officials have briefed various figures, including leaders of the settlement movement.
Calling the reports "an exaggerated slander," the letter demands that the Defense Ministry and the ISA publicly state that Dardik is not a central suspect in the case and that they do not possess evidence that he assaulted a Palestinian, had physical contact with one, or was present at the scene of the incident.
Dardik is scheduled to appear before the Jerusalem District Court on Thursday for a hearing on an appeal filed by Central Command chief Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth. The appeal challenges a ruling by the Military Court of Appeals that found the administrative detention order issued against Dardik could not be enforced. The appeal was submitted after Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed that the court's ruling be accepted and that the administrative proceedings against Dardik not continue.