Can new Dardik model be used to reduce administrative detention for some Palestinians? - analysis

On Monday, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) made a decision regarding settler and allegedly dangerous activist Tal Yinon Dardik, which may serve as a model for reducing administrative detention for some Palestinians. Since October 7, the number of Palestinians in administrative detention has more than tripled and quadrupled, reaching between 3,000 and over 3,300. This has severely harmed Israel's global legitimacy.

After October 7, Israel faced a decision to balance its future security needs against Hamas, but since summer 2024, the IDF has been reevaluating extreme wartime practices. The Dardik model could potentially reduce the overwhelming number of administrative detentions of Palestinians. The IDF and Israel have already taken steps to consider more lenient measures for Dardik, who was previously prohibited from traveling anywhere in the West Bank but can now live in Modi in Illit, Judea and Samaria, with daily police checks and the option of electronic ankle cuffs to allow travel throughout the West Bank.

The IDF suspects Dardik of multiple violent and dangerous attacks in Palestinian villages, but his leniency suggests that Palestinians affiliated with terror groups who have not been part of a violent plot could also benefit from similar measures. Historically, ideological differences and concerns about the danger posed by Palestinian detainees have led to harsher treatment compared to Jewish detainees.

However, the Dardik model demonstrates that creative and lenient balancing acts could strike a more balanced approach, potentially improving Israel's global legitimacy. A pilot program with a small number of Palestinian detainees could determine the model's effectiveness before wider implementation.