A 14-year-old boy from the town of Beit Ummar, in the occupied West Bank, is arrested by Israeli soldiers at 4:30 am.

Israeli soldiers with dogs stormed Malek’s house at 4:30 am. "I was really worried and tense and it showed on my face," says Malek. "My mother asked me not to be scared and was really supportive." After searching the house for about 15 minutes, Malek was taken outside and his hands were tied painfully behind his back with a single plastic tie, contrary to stated army procedure. Malek was also blindfolded. 

The soldiers made Malek walk to the nearby Israeli settlement of Karmi Zur. He reports that he was kicked and punched from behind along the way. He also tripped several times as he was made to walk blindfolded. On arrival at the settlement, located about 1.5 kilometres away, Malek was placed in the back of a military vehicle. He recalls that the driver braked suddenly on about five occasions, causing his head to hit the ceiling. "I think they did this on purpose to scare me and have a little fun," says Malek. "A soldier also hit me with a stick or something hard on my knee which was very painful."

Malek was transferred to the police station in Etzion settlement where he reports being dragged approximately 100 metres to an interrogation room. He was untied and his blindfold was removed. He saw two interrogators, one who introduced himself as Dawoud. "He was in his early thirties, tall, short hair, wearing blue jeans and a colourful shirt," recalls Malek. He asked the interrogators why he was being held and Dawoud responded: "because you threw stones at soldiers." Malek denied the accusation. "The other interrogator slapped me across my neck and punched me in the back." Malek was then taken to another room where there was a third interrogator. The third interrogator also accused him of throwing Molotov cocktails, which he denied. "At that point, Dawoud and the other interrogator started kicking me on my legs and back for about 10 minutes. They would stop and bombard me with questions and then would start kicking me again." Malek recalls that they stopped kicking him when a fourth interrogator entered the room and also accused him of throwing stones. After Malek denied the accusation, the fourth interrogator kicked and slapped him. "After that Dawoud and the second interrogator joined him and the three of them punched and kicked me until I started crying. I was in pain and very tense, so I decided to confess. I said I threw one stone when I was 10 and they stopped hitting me."

After confessing, Malek was taken to another room by a policeman. "'I’ll take your statement. Tell me what you told the interrogators’ he said in clear Arabic as he turned on a tape recorder," recalls Malek. After taking his statement the policeman ordered Malek to sign a piece of paper written in Hebrew. Malek was then re-tied and blindfolded and made to sit outside in the hot sun for two hours. "I was exhausted and had a headache," recalls Malek. Later on that day Malek was transferred to Ofer prison, near Ramallah, where he was placed in a cell with 10 adults.