Palestinian prisoners in Jalbo threaten hunger strike

[ 28/07/2010 - 04:04 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jail of Jalbo have threatened to go on hunger strike in the event the prison administration continued to impose penal measures against them. The Palestinian prisoners' society said in a statement on Wednesday that the penalties included a two-month ban on purchasing from the internal and external canteens, confiscating electric appliances while only allowing two fans out of eight for each ward, and a ban on exercise. The prisoners are also deprived of visits by children less than eight years old, barred from sending messages to their relatives for the next couple of months, and they are subjected to daily, provocative search campaigns, the society said, adding that the punishment is imposed because the administration claims the prisoners were hiding cell phones. The prisoners said they sent protest messages to concerned parties in the Israeli prisons authority but with no answers so far, adding that in the event such practice continued they would go on hunger strike. The society also said that Palestinian prisoners in Shatta jail are boycotting the prison doctor because of his ill-treatment and because he does not give them suitable medication for their conditions.

MP Mohammed Abu Teir trial postponed until November

[ 28/07/2010 - 04:00 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli court decided during a hearing Wednesday to postpone the trial of Jerusalem MP Mohammed Abu Teir until November 22, 2010. The court gathered at 9:00am Wednesday to prosecute the Palestinian Legislative Council member on charges of “remaining in the city of Jerusalem without an official permit,” after the Israeli decision to withdraw his identity card. MP Ahmed Attoun said in a press statement: “[Israel] persists to pass [laws] to exile us, and MP Abu Teir’s trial comes in the framework of pressure practiced against us to force us to execute decisions amid weak official positions among Arabs and no practical action to resolve our problem.” MP Attoun reiterated that the Palestinian MPs stand firm in not leaving the occupied city of Jerusalem, adding that MP Abu Teir prefers remaining in prison to signing for his own exile. He called on the people of Jerusalem to stand in front of the Israeli Magistrate court  to deliver the message to the world that “we are gathered to stand against the decision to exile our representatives in the Holy City.” Abu Teir’s attorney, Osama Sa’di said: “The defense team will be in recognition of the facts contained in the indictment, and confirm that international law applies to Jerusalem, as it is an occupied city, and the Geneva Conventions prohibit deportation.” He said that this is seventh time within two months that Abu Teir appeared in court after Israel’s decision to withdraw the identity cards of three Jerusalem MPs: Abu Teir, Ahmed Attoun, and Mohammed Toutah, and former Jerusalem minister, Abu Arafah. Abu Teir trial delayed until November Published yesterday (updated) 28/07/2010 18:31 Jerusalem - Ma'an - An Israeli court deferred until 22 November on Wednesday the trial of a Palestinian lawmaker from Jerusalem who has been remanded in Israeli custody since his detention in May. Mohammad Abu Teir's trial was postponed because of an Israeli Supreme Court hearing on 9 September to discuss the case, prompting the Magistrate's Court to delay the lawmaker's hearing until the higher court rules. As a result, the lawmaker will be kept in custody pending trial, his legal team said. The court filed indictments against Abu Teir, including the charge that he is illegally residing in Jerusalem after the Israeli Interior Ministry revoked his residency rights shortly after his release from prison in May. Abu Teir's legal team rejected the charges. Lawyer Usama As-Sa'di, who is heading Abu Teir's defense, said he will present arguments based on international law because East Jerusalem is considered occupied territory, as well as the Geneva Convention preventing expulsion of the occupied population. In May, Israel announced it was stripping Abu Teir, Ahmad Atoun, Mohammad Totah, and Khaled Abu Arafeh -- all Hamas-affiliated lawmakers -- of their residency rights and issuing a deadline for them to leave the city. The three other lawmakers have been holding a sit-in at the International Committee for the Red Cross headquarters in Sheikh Jarrah since the decision was announced. Speaking with Ma'an's correspondent following the decision, Attoun called on Jerusalem residents to gather outside the trial to convey to the world "that we stand against the decision to deport Jerusalem's lawmakers."

Khatib warns of plotting to kill Sheikh Salah in prison

[ 28/07/2010 - 03:55 PM ]

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Sheikh Kamal Al-Khatib, the deputy leader of the Islamic movement in 1948 occupied Palestine, has warned of an Israeli plot to kill Sheikh Raed Salah, the leader of the movement, while serving a jail sentence. Khatib in a press statement on Wednesday said that there is a danger on Sheikh Salah's life from Jewish homicide convicts in the Ayalon prison where he is incarcerated. He recalled that Sheikh Salah was the target of a failed attempt on his life while boarding the Freedom Flotilla late last May at the hands of the Israeli forces and the scenario might recur while in jail, charging the Shabak with inciting against him. Khatib described the five-month sentence against Sheikh Salah as "oppressive" because the Sheikh was defending himself against the Israeli police attacks at Bab Al-Maghareba.

IOF troops detain Palestinian student on returning from the Ukraine

[ 28/07/2010 - 10:49 AM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) manning the King Hussein Bridge crossing point with Jordan detained a Palestinian student on returning from the Ukraine where he was studying medicine. Eyewitnesses said that Baha'a Jaradat was taken into custody by an intelligence force as soon as he handed his passport. Jaradat had concluded his medicine schooling for five years in the Ukraine and was returning to his hometown of Sa'ir. Meanwhile, IOF soldiers detained eight Palestinian civilians in Al-Khalil and Tobas districts after storming their homes. Local sources said that seven of those citizens were rounded up in Yatta village, Al-Khalil district.

Gaza deportees demand return to their homes

[ 28/07/2010 - 09:00 AM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- Deportees from the West Bank and 1948 occupied Palestine to the Gaza Strip have asked the world community and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to pressure Israel into allowing them back to their homes from where they were forcibly evicted. The deportees were participating in a march organized by the ministry of prisoners in Gaza and the higher national committee for support of prisoners to denounce the Israeli deportation policy as stipulated in the military order 1650. The march headed from the Palestinian legislative council to the ICRC offices where the deportees addressed a press conference asking the Red Cross to stand alongside their case. They handed Jakob Kellenberger, the president of the ICRC, a message explaining their suffering as a result of the Israeli measure. It cited the case of Mohammed Atawne who said that he was married 16 years ago to a young woman in Beersheba and completed all legal procedures to obtain an ID card that enabled him to live in the 1948 occupied land. However, he said that two and a half years ago the Israeli authorities suddenly forced him back to Gaza at the pretext he had relatives there leaving behind his wife and three sons. For his part, Kellenberger promised to read the message and to seriously follow up their issue. He said, "We know that many families were disintegrated as a result of this measure and we will try to help those families that suffer a lot as a result of their relatives deportation to Gaza".

IOF soldiers detain Palestinian businessman

[ 27/07/2010 - 05:39 PM ]

TULKAREM, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) detained a 50-year-old Palestinian businessman from his house in Tulkarem city at dawn Tuesday without any reasons given for the detention, local sources reported. They said that Osama Al-Tunaib, the owner of one of the biggest bus transport companies in the West Bank along with a travel company, general contracting company, and a factory for construction material, was not known for any political affiliation or activity. Locals told the PIC reporter that a big number of those soldiers forced their way into Tunaib's apartment after encircling the building that carries his name in the western suburb of Tulkarem. The soldiers ordered the inhabitants to get out of the building before taking away the businessman. Tunaib is the second businessman to be arrested by IOF troops in Tulkarem, the first being Ali Al-Dadu, the owner of a carpet company. Another IOF unit stormed Shuwaika north of Tulkarem and detained two brothers after wreaking havoc in their family home, local sources said, adding that the soldiers also ransacked the Shuwaika charity society. Meanwhile, the IOF command announced that 11 Palestinians were rounded up in the West Bank at dawn Tuesday in various areas. It claimed that a pistol and ammunition were found in one of the houses in Qalqilia.

Bil'in popular committee appeal highlights cost of struggle

Bethlehem - Ma'an - An Israeli court judge agreed to release a Bil'in resident and son of a local activist leader from detention, with the condition of 10,000 shekels ($2,600 US) in bail, members of the village popular committee reported.

The popular committee in Bil'in issued an appeal on Wednesday, a document that illustrated the difficulties faced by the village and the impact of the long-term struggle against the wall.

The 17-year-old Ahmad Burnat, son of Waheeh Burnat who featured prominently in the 2006 documentary Bil'in Habibti, was taken from his home on 19 July. In its appeal for funds to release the young man on bail, the popular committee detailed the life of the Burnat family and its involvement in the popular protest movement.

By struggling against the construction of the wall, the popular committee said, "Ahmad's family cannot afford the money to pay Ahmad's bail."

In 2000, in the thick of the Second Intifada, Ahmad's eldest brother, Rani, was paralyzed from the neck down after being shot in the neck by a sniper during a demonstration. Following the injury, the popular committee said, "Israel also revoked Ahmad's father's work permit."

In 2002 when Israel began construction of the separation wall, the family lost its agricultural lands, which had provided food for the Burnat's and provided a buffer for survival after Waheeh lost his job in Israel.

Another of Ahmad's brothers, Ibrahim Burnat, was arrested in January 2010, and the family had to put up bail for his release for a trial that continues.

Arrests targeting community and protest leaders, and then their families, the committee said, are "a threat to our ability to sustain this new vital wave of grassroots resistance. Lawyers fees, bails and prisoner support are an obstacle that we will be able to overcome, but to do so, we need your support today more than we have ever needed it before."

Egypt, Jihad sign deal to release 20 affiliates

Gaza – Ma'an – Egypt and the Islamic Jihad movement have signed an agreement to secure the release of 20 supports in Egyptian custody, officials announced Tuesday.

Two Islamic Jihad detainees were released Tuesday, identified as Mohammad Al-Masri and Ali Ayyad, who were arrested upon arrival from Syria. Three party affiliates remain in custody but will be released under the deal, which was signed by Islamic Jihad leader Nafeth Azzam.

Since July, Egypt has released six Islamic Jihad prisoners, identified as Talal Abed Al-A’al, Ahmad Hajaj, Mohammad Al-Hashim, Ibrahim Al-Mousa, Hamza Ihmeid, and Obeida Al-Gharablie.

Son of PA official detained while father abroad

Qalqiliya – Ma'an – Israeli forces raided the house of the Ministry of Civil Affairs Undersecretary Ma’rouf Zahran in Qalqiliya on Monday morning, detaining his 18-year-old son, family members said.

The undersecretary was not at home during the raid and remains abroad on an official visit to Turkey. Two of his children and sister were in the home, however, with daughter Hadil telling Ma'an that 25 soldiers entered the house at 4 a.m.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said one arrest was made in Qalqiliya overnight.

The individual was taken for questioning, she said.

Hadil said her brother Adam was not questioned at the home, but detained and taken along with some of the papers from the building, which she said was thoroughly searched.

During the search, Hadil said, she, her aunt, and her brother were taken into one room and were not asked any questions as soldiers searched the home. Afterwards, soldiers took her brother, she said.

Nine prisoners suffer in solitary confinement in Ashkelon prison

[ 25/07/2010 - 06:38 PM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)-- Nine Palestinian prisoners have been removed from the outside world by the Ashkelon prison department and placed in inhumane conditions in complete isolation from the rest of the prison population, the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said. The society said that the cells of the prison’s solitary confinement section are only large enough to accommodate a single bed, besides which there remains only enough extra room to take two or three footsteps. The cells have poor ventilation and no sunlight.  Prisoners are only permitted to leave to the courtyard once a day for an hour, and the majority of them prefer remaining in their cells because the courtyard is so small. Most of the time prisoners are shackled by the hands and feet. Food is scarce and is cold by the time it reaches them. The PPS added that prisoners are unable to make contact with the outside world, and that most remain without family visits due to security reasons alleged by the prison administration, causing some of the prisoners to become mentally and even physically ill. The society explained that the Israeli occupation government keeps them in isolation because it claims that they pose a threat if integrated with other prisoners. “What makes matters worse, the prison administration has prohibited the prisoners in isolation from bringing in any books, and if a prisoner has committed a violation he would be deprived of electrical appliances, such as TV, radio, or even fans,” said prisoner Abdullah Barghouthi from Ramallah, who was sentenced to 67 life terms. He added that the prison administration deliberately transfers him time to time from one prison to another, so he is unable to become settled in one prison, and that if an inmate attempts to tell the outside world of the conditions in solitary confinement, the prison administration takes away all his electrical appliances or deprives him the right to read. According to the Israeli prisons authority (IPA), prisoners are placed in confinement for four reasons. The first is for “security purposes”, meaning that the prison department places detained leaders in confinement so other prisoners won’t be affected by them. These security prisoners are in most cases detained for many years. Other prisoners are kept in confinement during the investigation process, which sometimes lasts for three months, because the prison administration believes that if they have contact with prisoners, they will learn from them and not give confessions. The third group is in confinement because of mental illness, and is isolated for the safety of other prisoners. And others are taken there because they are not welcomed by the rest of the prison population because of their ties with the IPA. The PPS underlined that international conventions, such as the one in Geneva, have banned isolating captives from other prisoners for long periods of time, unless the prisoner’s life is at risk, and in such case he should not be deprived the right to food, drink, and books. The prisoners’ society has called on the IPA to discontinue its inhumane practices, which are in clear violation of international law, and also called on human rights organizations, especially the general commissioner of the United Nations in Palestine and the International Red Cross, to form a committee to disclose the suffering of the prisoners in solitary confinement and take immediate action in taking them out of isolation.

Ghoul asks Red Cross to end its silence on Israel's violations against prisoners

[ 25/07/2010 - 04:14 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)-- Palestinian minister of prisoners' affairs Faraj Al-Ghoul deplored in a letter he handed to director of the Red Cross office in Gaza Stephane Beytrison the international agency's silence towards Israel's violations against the Palestinian prisoners in its jails. Ghoul explained in his letter the deteriorating incarceration conditions which the Palestinian prisoners are experiencing in Israeli jails, especially after Israel created the Shalit law which deprived them of their basic rights. The minister also criticized Catherine Ashton, the European Union's representative for foreign affairs, who demanded the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit with nothing in exchange and ignored 7,000 Palestinian prisoners in Israel's jails deprived of their right to life and freedom. "It is no longer acceptable for us to hear flimsy excuses, especially after the occupation unveiled its true face when it dealt with the prisoners through imposing the Shalit law," he told Beytrison. The Red Cross director, for his part, promised to study the appeals mentioned in the letter and pressure Israel to improve the imprisonment conditions of prisoners in its jails.

Sheikh Raed Salah begins 5-month jail term

Bethlehem- Ma'an - A prominent Palestinian religious leader began a five-month jail sentence Sunday, after being convicted of assault for spitting on an Israeli border guard.

An Israeli court in occupied East Jerusalem reduced Sheikh Raed Salah's term from nine months on 13 July. A lawyer at the hearing described the ruling as "unprecedented."

The head of the Islamic Movement in northern Israel was indicted for assault for spitting on a border guard in East Jerusalem's Old City in 2007 during a rally against Israeli construction near the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Criminalization of Popular Struggle Continued; Abdallah Abu Rahmah Sentenced

From the Popular Struggle Coordination Committee.

Abdallah Abu Rahmah’s first trial from 2005 had reached conclusion yesterday, with his sentencing to two months of imprisonment and a six months suspended sentence for participating and organizing demonstrations and for walking the streets of his village during a curfew designed to prevent a demonstration. A verdict in Abu Rahmah’s main case for which he is already in jail since December is expected soon.

Bil’in Protest organizer Abdallah Abu Rahmah was sentenced to two months of imprisonment and to a six month suspended sentence, after a five year long trial on charges clearly related to freedom of speech.
Abu Rahmah was convicted of two counts of “activity against the public order”, simply for participating in demonstrations, in one count despite the fact that “No evidence of violence towards the security forces was provided”. Abu Rahmah was also convicted of “obstructing a soldier in the line of duty”, for shouting at a police officer and refusing to leave the scene of a demonstration, of “breaking curfew”, for being in the street in front of his house when the army declared curfew on Bil’in to suppress a demonstration, and of “incitement”, which under military law is defined as “The attempt, verbal or otherwise, to influence public opinion in the Area in a way that may disturb the public peace or public order”. Abu Rahmah was convicted of inciting others to “[…] continue advancing [to their lands during a demonstration in Bil'in], claiming that the land belongs to them.
Gaby Lasky, Abdallah Abu Rahmah’s lawyer said that “The military court threads a dangerous path of criminalizing legitimate protest in the West Bank. Abu Rahmah was arrested, prosecuted and sentenced with the clear intention of sending a message that the Palestinian struggle, even when of civic nature, will not be tolerated”.
Yesterday’s sentence joins a long line of recent military court decisions criminalizing Palestinian protest and effectively cracking down on the already limited Palestinian freedom of speech. The decisions are part of an Israeli campaign to suppress Palestinian grassroots resistance to the Occupation across the Occupied Territories.
One of the clearest examples of the legal persecution against protesters is that of Adeeb Abu Rahmah from Bil’in, who is still incarcerated, even after fully serving a ridiculously long 12 months sentence.
Mohammed Khatib of the Bil’in Popular Committee said that “In my village we learned that when we fight for our rights, when we expose what is being done to us, we can achieve victories, and indeed the path of the Wall is now being moved. Israeli is trying to intimidate us, to dissuade from fighting for our rights – but what other options do we have? Both the Wall and the settlements on our lands are built in contradiction of i

http://theonlydemocracy.org/2010/07/criminalization-of-popular-struggle-continued-abdallah-abu-rahmah-sentenced/

Israeli court rejects Raed Salah appeal

Jerusalem - Ma'an - Israel’s High Court rejected a petition on Thursday appealing Raed Salah's five month sentence for spitting on a border guard in 2007.

The leader of the Islamic Movement in northern Israel will begin his sentence on Sunday.

The incident occurred during a rally against construction at the Mughrabi gate, in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem. Salah was arrested and banned from entering within 150 meters of the Mosque.

The sheikh was also banned from meeting with more than six people in public in Jerusalem, his lawyers said in a statement.

His lawyers added that Salah is going to prison for a crime committed by the occupation against Al-Aqsa mosque.

Group: Sick detainee refused treatment

Gaza - Ma'an - Israeli authorities have refused to allow Jamal Abu Al-Hayaja, 51, visits from his daughter, Gaza's prison committee reported Wednesday.

Al-Hayaja, from Jenin, was sentenced to life imprisonment and has served eight years, four months of which was spent in solitary confinement.

His only child, a 15-year-old daughter, is the only family member who has received permission to travel to the prison. However, prison guards have refused to allow her visits, committee coordinator Baha Al-Madhoum said.

The coordinator added that Al-Hayaja, from Jenin, developed skin diseases in his isolation cell, and his hand has been amputated, but he has been denied treatment or visits from his lawyer.

Al-Madhoum called on human rights organizations to intervene in Al-Hajaya’s case, and in the cases of the many other detainees held in isolation.

Israel releases 3 detainees

Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli authorities on Wednesday released three detainees who have completed their sentences.

Foad Al-Khafsh of the Detainees Society said As-Sumu village mayor Musa Abu Al-Hadayel was released after spending 19 months in an Israeli prison. It was not clear why he was jailed.

Al-Khafsh added that father-of-eight Al-Hadayel, 45, had previously spent six years in Israeli jail, and has a degree in physics. The reason for his detention was not specified.

Ahmad Hmeidan, 27, from Hebron, and Isam Def Allah, 24, from Ramallah, were released from Negev prison, Al-Khafsh said, without mentioning charges. Both men had been detained for 30 months.

From jail, Palestinian appeals for medical help

Salfit – Ma'an – A Palestinian man sentenced to life in an Israeli prison appealed to rights organizations Wednesday via officials at the Detainees Center in Salfit, saying he fears an undiagnosed and untreated medical condition is endangering his life.

Foad Atiyeh Qar’an was imprisoned 18 May 2007 and sentenced to 25 years. He says he is sick, in constant pain in his stomach and intestines, can eat little, and sleeps less due to the condition.

According to his letter, Qar'an was taken by prison officials to the Ar-Ramleh prison hospital several times, but said each doctor attributed the pain to a different cause, and to date he has only been prescribed light painkillers for the condition.

The painkillers are not enough to dull the condition, he said in the letter, adding that he had written his own lawyer several times to appeal to rights groups to have him seen by a doctor and provided treatment.

Israel extends administrative detention of Nablus man

Nablus - Ma'an - Israeli authorities renewed the administrative detention of Reda Khaled for a further three months Monday, a prisoners affairs representative said.

Maysar Atyani said Khaled, from a refugee camp near Nablus, was arrested in December 2008 but has spent seven years in Israeli prisons on-and-off.

The longest period the father of five has spent with his family is one year, his wife said.

Under administrative detention, detainees receive no charge or trial. Under international law, it is only permitted in very extreme, rigidly restricted circumstances.

Israel has administratively detained thousands of Palestinians, sometimes for many years, without prosecuting them. Prisoners are never told what they are charged with, and their lawyers are not allowed to see evidence.

The Israeli peace organization B'Tselem says Israel's use of the practice is "extremely extensive," and that "often authorities use administrative detention as a quick and efficient alternative to criminal trial, primarily when they do not have sufficient evidence to charge the individual."

Ahrar denounces IOF arrest of Palestinian woman

[ 19/07/2010 - 05:05 PM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)-- Ahrar center for prisoners' studies and human rights has denounced the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) for arresting a 57-year-old Palestinian woman in her house in Tulkarem at dawn Monday. Fouad Al-Khafsh, the center's director, said that a big number of IOF soldiers broke into the house of Fathiya Al-Suweis and wreaked havoc in it before taking away the lady, the whereabouts of whom is not known. He said that the woman is the mother of a sole child and is the sister of Ikhlas Al-Suweis, who is the wife of the detained Hamas leader Abbas Al-Sayyed who is serving 36 life sentences. Khafsh said that this is the first time that Suweis was detained, noting that the IOF had recently escalated detention of Palestinian women amidst total disregard on the part of human rights groups. He appealed to the international institutions and women organizations to confront the phenomenon. Meanwhile, Israeli occupation police on Monday rounded up 25 Palestinians in Tel Aviv at the pretext of entering 1948 occupied Palestine without a permit. Local sources said that 60 Palestinian workers were arrested since last Thursday from various areas in the 1948 occupied lands for the same reason.

Shin Bet arrests 'Hamas cell' over policeman killing

Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - Israel's security services revealed Monday that it recently detained members of an alleged Hamas military wing suspected of involvement in the shooting death of an Israeli police officer last month.

The Shin Bet made the announcement after a gag order on the case was lifted, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.

According to the security services, detentions were made in village of Deir Samet six days after Yehoshua Sofer, 39, was shot dead on 14 June in Hebron on an officer transport from Beer Sheva.

During interrogation, the suspects reportedly said they were members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades - Imad Mughniyeh Group, established last year.

However, it is unclear how the ties to Hamas were made, as the group's moniker suggests affiliation with Fatah. According to Haaretz, the Shin Bet believes the members of the cell were from various groups.

Four members of the group allegedly took part in the attack that killed Sofer, with one reportedly serving as a lookout while the three others sat in a car at the side of the road in order to open fire on the passing police vehicle, the daily wrote.

The Shin Bet said the suspects re-enacted the attack and also handed over the rifles they were using at the time.

PFLP warns: Saadat facing slow death in Israeli jails

[ 19/07/2010 - 08:42 AM ]

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The popular front for the liberation of Palestine (PFLP) has warned that its detained secretary general Ahmed Saadat was facing slow death in Israeli isolation cells. The PFLP in a statement on Sunday said that the Israeli occupation authority was planning to kill Saadat in those isolation cells, noting that the Israeli prisons authority would hold a session in mid October to discuss extending his solitary confinement. It called for organizing rallies in support of Palestinian prisoners in general and those held in isolation topped by Saadat in particular on that day. The front asked the Palestinian and Arab parties and forces along with freedom movements in the world to organize rallies and media campaigns in solidarity with the Palestinian prisoners. It also urged the UN and human rights groups to assume their responsibility towards those prisoners and not let them alone face slow death.

Israeli court extends detention of Abu Tir for refusing to leave OJ

[ 18/07/2010 - 02:42 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli magistrate court in occupied Jerusalem on Sunday decided to retain Jerusalemite MP Mohammed Abu Tir in custody until court procedures against him were over. The court ruling followed Abu Tir's rejection to leave occupied Jerusalem as a condition for his release. The MP said that he preferred incarceration to deportation and that he would never leave Jerusalem voluntarily. In a previous hearing the court offered Abu Tir to be released in return for immediate departure form Jerusalem along with a bail of almost 100,000 dollars that would be confiscated if he returned. Lawyer of Abu Tir said that his client refused all options choosing instead Jerusalem and jail.

Relatives of prisoners complain of humiliating search

[ 18/07/2010 - 09:00 AM ]

NEGEV, (PIC)-- Relatives of Palestinian prisoners have complained of the humiliating search on the part of Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) that in certain instances included strip search. The mother of prisoner Mohammed Al-Masri, who is held in the Negev prison, said on Saturday that she was forced to wait for a long time by the prison administration before female recruits thoroughly searched her then forced her to take off most of her clothes at the pretext of looking for mobile phones. The Negev prisoners threatened to go on hunger strike in the event the administration maintained its humiliating and provocative search of the prisoners and their relatives. In another incident related to the Palestinian prisoners, a committee for prisoners' affairs in 1948 occupied Palestine organized a sit-in at the Hadarim jail in solidarity with the prisoners and in protest at the arbitrary measures and continued search campaigns maintained against them for the past week. Relatives of prisoners staged the sit-in near the jail despite the IOA's declaration of the area a closed military zone and closing the jail. The relatives raised photos of prisoners and signs calling for cancellation of the so-called Shalit law that imposed more restrictions on the prisoners. They urged human rights groups to send representatives to the Israeli prisons to inquire about the conditions of the prisoners.

2 days of raids at Hadarim prison

Published Friday 16/07/2010 (updated) 17/07/2010 19:06

Salfit - Ma'an - Palestinian prisoners held in Israel's Hadarim detention center reported a second day of raids, the Prisoners Studies Center said Friday.

The prison authorities carried out the raids with the pretext of searching for cell phones, but the inspection teams seized personal belongings, photos, letters and university books, detainees told the center.

Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners are held at the Hadarim prison, including Fatah leader Marwan Barghouthi.

PCHR weekly report 7/7 - 14/7/2010

extracts from PCHR weekly report 7/7 - 14/7/2010

At least 800 Palestinian prisoners from Gaza in Israeli jails have been deprived of family visitation for more than two and a half years. 

In recognition of ICRC as the guardian of the Fourth Geneva Convention, PCHR calls upon the ICRC to increase its staff and activities in the OPT, including the facilitation of family visitations to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

 During the reporting period, IOF conducted at least twenty-one military incursions into Palestinian communities in the West Bank, during which they arrested nine Palestinian civilians. IOF also arrested a Palestinian civilian and three Israeli human rights defenders during the dispersion of peaceful protests.

Israeli troops stationed at military checkpoints and border crossings in the West Bank arrested six Palestinian civilians, including a child. 

Thursday, 08 July 2010

· At approximately 06:30, Israeli gunboats stationed off the coast of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip opened fire at a number of Palestinian fishing boats. Soon afterwards two gunboats besieged a small fishing boat; on board were 'Ammar As'ad al-Sultan, 17, and Tamer Mohammed Zayed, 27. Israeli troops ordered the two fishermen to sail towards a moorage known as "al-Rafsouda," nearly 1,500 meters to the northwest. When the two fishermen arrived at the moorage, Israeli troops ordered them to tie the boat to it, take their clothes off and jump into the water, which they did. The two fishermen were then taken into custody by the Israeli forces and transported to the Israeli port of Ashdod, where they were detained and interrogated. The two fishermen were released at approximately 17:00 at Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing.

Friday, 09 July 2010

Also following the Friday Prayer on 09 July 2010, dozens of Palestinian civilians and international and Israeli human rights defenders organized a peaceful demonstration in Nabi Saleh village, northwest of Ramallah, in protest against land confiscations in the Wad al-Raya area between the villages of Nabi Saleh and Deir Nizam. When the demonstrators attempted to reach areas of land seized by Israeli settlers near "Halmish" settlement, Israeli troops fired rubber-coated metal bullets, sound bombs and tear gas canisters at them. IOF also arrested Naji Mohammed al-Tamimi, 51, but released him four hours later. They also arrested two Israeli human rights defenders: Ayal, 22; and Ben, 23.  

Sunday, 11 July 2010

· At approximately 00:00, IOF moved into Beit 'Awa village, southwest of Hebron where they raided and searched a number of houses and arrested Mohammed Yasser Masalma, 28.

· At approximately 01:00, IOF moved into Sa'ir village, northeast of Hebron where they raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Muhannad 'Abdul Hamid al-Froukh, 24, and arrested Mr. al-Froukh. 

Monday, 12 July 2010

· At approximately 01:30, IOF moved into Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin, where they raided and searched a number of houses and arrested three Palestinian civilians:

1. Fadi Riad Zakarna, 18;

2. Mustafa Ahmed Nazzal, 20; and

3. Mahmoud Khaled Abu Sanjar, 20.

 Tuesday, 13 July 2010

At approximately 02:00, IOF moved into Beit Reema village, northwest of Ramallah, where they raided and searched a house belonging to the family of Jamal Sameeh Yassin, 19, and arrested Mr. Yassin. 

Wednesday, 14 July 2010

· At approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Qabatya village, southeast of Jenin, where they raided and searched a number of houses and arrested three Palestinian civilians:

1. Ahmed Nafe' Abu al-Rub, 23;

2. Mohammed Ahmed Kmayel, 27; and

3. Ayman 'Abdul Rahman Abu al-Rub, 22.

· Also at approximately 02:30, IOF moved into Marda village, southeast of Salfit, where they raided and searched a house belonging to Jad 'Abdul Mon'em al-Khuffash and Firas Bassem al-Khuffash and summonsed them for interrogation.

Arrests at Military Checkpoints

· At approximately 13:00 on Saturday, 10 July 2010, IOF moved into agricultural areas in the southwest of Rafat village, west of Salfit. There they arrested Majd 'Ouda Abu Zraiq, 16, while he was watching over his animals, claiming that he was not in possession of an ID card. They took him to "Ariel" settlement where he was released an hour later.

· At approximately 12:00 on Sunday, 11 July 2010, Israeli troops positioned at a checkpoint at the entrance of Hebron arrested Tayseer Hassan Jaber, 47, and his nephew Qutaiba Ibrahim Jaber, 19, both from Jenin refugee camp. According to Fatema 'Abdullah Jaber, the sister-in-law of the former and the mother of the latter, IOF confiscated 5,000 NIS from the two detainees. Tayseer has suffered from a heart clot recently and he lost one of his kidneys during the first Palestinian Intifada when he was hit by a bullet.

 

    

IOA exiles Jerusalem child for throwing stones

[ 17/07/2010 - 04:58 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- An eleven-year-old boy from Jerusalem was exiled by Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) for throwing stones at Israeli military forces. The committee for defense of land and real estate in Silwan south of the Aqsa Mosque said that an Israeli court in Jerusalem decided to expel 11-year-old Ahmed Gheith from the Batn al-Hawa district of Silwan for two months, also banning Gheith from stepping foot in the ‘Ayn region of the same town and imposing about one thousand dollars fine on his parents. The committee strongly condemned the Israeli decision saying in a press statement that it "confirms that the [Israeli] occupation does not pay any attention at all to the rights of Palestinian citizens, especially children’s rights", drawing attention to the numerous child arrests by Israeli forces in the town of Silwan for participation in clashes against extremist Jewish groups and Israeli occupation forces. The committee explained that elements from an undercover Israeli unit arrested Gheith yesterday and took him to the so-called "border guards" police station on Salahuddin Road opposite Herod's Gate, where he was subjected to questioning and investigation about throwing stones at Jewish extremists in the ‘Ayn area of the city. --------------- Israeli court issues child with restraining order   Published yesterday (updated) 18/07/2010 12:30 Jerusalem - Ma'an - A Jerusalem boy from the Baten Al-Hawa neighborhood of Silwan was issued a restraining order by an Israeli district court on Friday ordering the 12-year-old to stay away from a neighboring area. Identified by the Wadi Hilwa Information Center as Ahmad Gheith, the boy's family had to pay 4,000 shekels ($1,035) in bail to ensure the release of their son, cash that will be remanded if the child enters the Al-Ein area, a neighborhood whose boundaries begin less than 30 meters from the family home. Officials say Ahmad is in all practical terms under house arrest. His family reportedly feared he would be detained by Israeli forces if he left the home since the neighborhood he was prohibited from entering has indistinct boundaries that in some cases come up to points across the street. The information center's director explained that the boy was detained by Israeli police on Thursday and taken to the Salah Ad-Din police station in Jerusalem after settlers in Silwan pointed him out as a stone thrower, charges he denies. The boy's father was summoned by police on Thursday, but Ahmad was not released to his custody. Rather, he was held and transferred to the court where he faced an Israeli judge on Friday. Convicted in a short hearing, the boy must stay away from the area currently inhabited by at least two settler homes for an undetermined period.

Tension running high at Jalbu' prison

[ 16/07/2010 - 02:17 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation prison authority has intensified its search operations of various sections of Jalbu' prison at the pretext that they found mobile phones smuggled into the prison. These operations have caused a state of restlessness amongst the prisoners. The prison authority has also penalised prisoners because of finding these mobile phones, making it worse for the prisoners who already live harsh conditions. The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) said on Friday that one of its lawyers visited the prison on Thursday that the situation inside the prison is not stable, especially in sections 3 and 5 as the prison administration found one mobile phone in section 3 and seven mobile phones in section 5. Ibrahim Elayan, a prisoner from Jerusalem, said that the prison administration has punished the prisoners in section 3 by barring them from the canteen and from their daily stroll for two weeks and by withdrawing six electric fans leaving the whole sections with only two fans. The punishment for section 5 was the same but for two months. Elayan added that sudden searches which includes searching the prisoners' quarters and strip-searching the prisoners themselves have increased, adding that prisoners' belongings are usually deliberately damaged during such searches. In addition to this, the prisoner said that they are threatened with harsher treatment by the prison officers. The prisoners have responded to these harsh measures by holding more meetings as well as taking some protest steps.

Israel Tortures Detained Children

By Atef Douglas - Nablus

Child prisoners are being tortured and threatened with rape (Al Jazeera) Israel-Palestine News, July 17, 2010 "We will attach the electricity wires to your testicles and prevent you from marriage and having kids forever, if you don’t tell us exactly what you know."   This is a fraction of what the Israeli interrogator said to the child "A.M.M" of the city of Hebron when he was arrested two weeks ago, who threatened to use "all methods" to force him to confess.   The 14-year-old boy "A.M.M" said that the Israeli occupation forces arrested him from his home at around two o'clock in the morning in a very violent way. He was frightened by the horror of the situation of soldiers storming the house who dragged him handcuffed, shackled and alone in a military vehicle, refusing to tell his parents the reason for his arrest or where they are taking him.   He added that during the interrogation - which lasted eight days - the investigators used tricks and torture to obtain false confessions, and when they did not succeed, they stung him by needles and threatened to attach electrical wires to his testis.   He pointed that they "obtained forced confessions" under psychological and physical torture, after they connected electrical power to the cables and started implementing their threats.   This child's testimony is not the first of its kind, it is one of hundreds of other similar testimonies compiled by Defense for Children International, in a report issued earlier this month. Sexual Assaults The legal adviser at Defense for Children International - Palestine section "Khaled Quzmar" said that the main motive behind the issuance of the report is the upsurge in arrests of children (seven hundred children per year) and the diversity of attacks on them, especially sexual assaults, which reached nearly 30% of all forms of abuse.   He stressed that the circumstances of arrest and detention cause harm to their physical and mental health, pointing out that child abuse is a crime, how can you be a child and be imprisoned? Quzmar: Israel does not respond to any international or local rulings to stop torture of child prisoners (Al Jazeera) The verbal threat of sexual assault on child prisoners is routine, but it develops sometimes to the point of direct offence by "rape."   Attempts to "insert a stick in the child’s anus to terrorize him" is what has happened a few days ago, as reported by one of the children.   He adds, "They exercised a flagrant violation of the right of a child last week." Quzmar called on local and international human rights organizations - in particular members of the Fourth Geneva Convention - to lift their voice to compel Israel to cease its violations, especially against children. Quzmar added that "Israel is the only country in the world that is above the law."   Israel has killed more than four hundred children last year (some burned to death by white phosphorus shells dropped in densely populated Gaza areas) and at least eight children since the beginning of this year. Seven hundred children are arrested by Israel each year (Al Jazeera) Everyone Is Responsible Deputy Minister for prisoner affairs, Ziad Abu Ein, said that Israel is practicing the worst forms of terrorism against child prisoners "where there's 335 children in prisons of the occupation."   He added that Israel is the only country in the world that authorizes legislations and laws for detaining children under the age of twelve and holding them accountable, and is not subject to any international law. According to the report, abuse of Palestinian children detained by the Israeli occupation forces - who are usually detained in the dead of night as a form of intimidation or deterrence - varied between handcuffing, which reached 97%, blindfolding 92%, beating and kicking 69%, verbal abuse, signing confessions in Hebrew, solitary confinement, and many other forms of abuse and torture. Source

:: Article nr. 68012 sent on 17-jul-2010 19:10 ECT www.uruknet.info?p=68012

:: The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website.

Order to shoot bound man `behavior unfitting a commander`

Bethlehem - Ma'an/Agencies - An Israeli military court convicted for the second time a soldier and an officer filmed shooting a bound and blindfolded protester, the country's daily Haaretz reported on Thursday.

The Israeli human rights group B’Tselem responded to the news saying the new convictions were "important," but called on the military to "act to root out ill treatment."

Following an Israeli court reprimand that resulted in no disciplinary action, four rights groups petitioned for further action against Lieutenant Colonel Omri Burberg, who was filmed holding a blindfolded and bound prisoner and ordering Staff Sargent Leonardo Korea to fire a rubber bullet into the leg of 27-year-old Ashraf Abu Rahme, a Palestinian protester in the West Bank village of Nil'in.

The military court's second look at the case resulted in Military Advocate General Avichai Mandelblit adding attempted threat and behavior unfitting for a commander to the charges against Burburg, and illegal use of a weapon to the charges against Korea, Haaretz reported.

"The military must now act decisively and proactively to ensure that the far too common phenomenon of ill treatment of Palestinian detainees is not tolerated," B'Tselem said in a statement.

Following the release of the video used in the case against the soldiers, which was filmed by a young girl from Ni'lin, the girl's father has been twice detained and her family has suffered harassment.

7 prisoners moved to solitary confinement

Gaza - Ma'an - Seven Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails were moved into isolation cells during the past week, the Center for Detainee Studies reported Wednesday, calling the move punitive and unnecessary.

Director of the Gaza-based center Rifat Hamdouna identified the seven as Tarek Izz Ad-Din, Abd Obaid, Yahya Ighbaria, Mohammed Daboos, Nasser Oais, Majid Al-Masri, and Moatasem Yassine. He said it was unclear how long they would be forced to stay in the cells.

Hamdouna called the move a violation of the rights of the prisoners under the Geneva Conventions governing prisoners of war, and called on human rights institutions to intervene and ensure the men's safety.

A prisoner's wife - Janan Abdu

I used to tell my husband, Ameer Makhoul, “One day, they’ll come for you.”

As chairman of the Public Committee for the Protection of Political Freedoms, he’d begun to organize an awareness-raising campaign to push back against the security services’ harassment of our community, the Palestinian citizens of Israel.

Come for Ameer they did late one night this May, pounding at our door, ransacking our house, and terrifying our two teenage daughters. And now I’ve joined the ranks of Palestinian prisoners’ wives, many thousands of us from the occupied territories as well as within Israel. His hearing – persecution really – could begin the legal nightmare that ruptures our family for many years. This is the likely course of events unless Ameer gets a fair trial and his coerced statements are rejected or suppressed by the court.

“Democracies don't fear their own people,” US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a speech in Poland at the 10th anniversary meeting of the Community of Democracies. “They recognize that citizens must be free to come together to advocate and agitate.” But the head of Israel’s General Security Services said three years ago that Palestinian citizens’ organizational efforts for equality constitute a “strategic threat,” even if pursued by lawful means.

That’s not how democracy works. We may be a minority of 20 percent, but our rights to organize and insist on full equality and civil rights ought to be sacrosanct. That’s what our entire community believes. The committee that Ameer chaired was established within the framework of the High Follow-up Committee for the Palestinian Citizens of Israel, the community’s overall coordinating body. It's a vital position and the leading organization protecting our civil rights.

And now he faces the most serious charges leveled against a Palestinian citizen of Israel since the creation of the state in 1948. He is accused of being a spy for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and having contact with a foreign agent. His trial will likely last for months.

After his arrest, Ameer was held incommunicado for 21 days and tortured. Then Israeli officials pressed their charges, based on the “confession” he made during this time, when he was deprived of sleep, shackled in a painful position to a small chair, and not allowed to see his lawyers.

Ameer denies all charges. As he said in his first letter from Gilboa Prison, he was “forced to explain to them in a very detailed way how exactly I did what I didn’t do, ever.” And if the prosecution needs any more information to make its case, all they have to do is use “so-called secret evidence, which my lawyers and I have no legal right to know about.”

Clinton’s Krakow speech focused on civil society: Ameer is a civil society activist. He directs Ittijah, the Union of Arab-Based Community Associations – a coalition that brings together 84 non-governmental organizations. Clinton criticized several governments by name – but not Israel – for intimidation and assassination of activists. Why does America’s drive to promote human rights stop at Israel’s door?

Throughout his life, Ameer has struggled for the rights of the Palestinian citizens of Israel – there are more than 35 laws on the books that discriminate against us – as well as those of the Palestinian people overall. He has the ability to lead and to convene diverse viewpoints, bringing them together across sect and ideology. His ability to network locally, at the Arab level, and internationally, coupled with his clear strategic vision – this is what Israel is trying to silence.

The youth also look to him for leadership, which infuriates the security services. They told Ameer so when they hauled him in for questioning during our community’s protests against Israel’s assault on Gaza in December 2008-January 2009.

During that interrogation they threatened to put him away if he kept up his activism, saying, “We can ‘disappear’ you. You should know that the next time we bring you in you will not see your family again for a long time.”

The few times we’ve been allowed to visit him thick glass has separated us and our meetings were taped. Ameer asked me for a copy of my new book to read in jail, but they wouldn’t let me even take him that. My daughters really miss their father. They often say, “If only we’d been able to hug him before they took him away.” That’s one of the things that hurts them most, not being able to hug their father.

Ameer still suffers from the torture and abuse inflicted on him, and they still try to break his spirit. They only allow 20 people into the courtroom even though it can hold many more, so when he sees it empty, he thinks no one cares. But far more people want to attend the trial than they allow in – family, community activists, politicians, and supporters from all over the world.

I have never thought of myself as a “wife” but rather as Ameer’s partner in life and in activism. But these days, as I wait with the other wives for our allotted visit, I find myself reflecting on the traditional Christian marriage vows: “What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.” No man, I think, unless he’s an Israeli jailer.

Clinton spoke of “the cowardice of those who deny their citizens the protections they deserve.” Ameer deserves the protection of the law: the right to meet his lawyers in private – Israeli officials have been taping those meetings too; the right to see the evidence against him, much of which the prosecution plans to withhold on security grounds; freedom from torture; and inadmissibility of confessions secured under torture. When will Clinton call for a Palestinian activist’s human rights and an end to his persecution?


Janan Abdu is a social worker, feminist activist, and researcher with Mada Al-Carmel, the Haifa-based Arab Center for Applied Social Research. Her husband was detained on 23 April on espionage and treason charges

The Treatment Of Palestinian Detainees During Operation “Cast Lead” (Full Text)

The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel & Adalah:
The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel

13 July, 2010
Countercurrents.org
The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel and Adalah: The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, released, today [July 6, 2010], a special report "Exposed" which discusses violations of detainee rights during "Cast Lead". The report relies on a significant number of testimonies given to PCATI and Adalah attorneys, most of the civilian detainees who were arrested by the Israeli army and interrogated in Israel. The testimonies provide give rise to a series claim that the Israeli Army systematically and deliberately violated their basic rights while disregarding domestic and international law.
Among its primary findings:
1. The State of Israel failed in it its international & domestic legal obligation to provide information regarding place of detention to detainee family members without delay to families of the detainees and to organizations dealing with detainees. Not only were detainee families harmed by this dereliction also the ability to monitor detention conditions and the application of detainee rights was harmed.
2. The detainees were held in wretched conditions. They were held in ditches and in cold and dark cells while be denied minimally appropriate nutrition and sanitary needs. This treatment forms the basis for the torture and ill treatment that many of the detainees experienced at various stages of their detention. These conditions allowed the army to break the spirit and to humiliate the detainees in addition to the violence that they suffered during interrogation.
3. The testimonies revealed that the army systematically used the Gaza residents as human shields in order to protect the soldiers while engaged in military activity, within the strip and for many days and even up to 10 days in some instances. At times the civilians were forced to go into homes ahead of the soldiers, to march next to the soldiers to shield them from gun fire.
4. Israel established a legal category for detainees, "unlawful combatant" which is unrecognized in international law. This special status allowed Israel to deprive the detainees of prisoner of war status and the conditions and rights that go with it while, at the same time, denying them the status and rights of protected civilians.
The report's conclusion a number of recommendations connected to detainee rights are made in order to prevent such a travesty of rights violations in the future. Among the recommendations is a call for the establishment of a governmental investigative committee that abides by international standards in order to investigate the violations of "Cast Lead" and to put on trial those suspected of committing offences. In addition the report recommends the establishment of standards for treatment of detainees, and to establish an efficient monitoring mechanism and to cancel the unlawful combatants law.
Research and Writing: Adv. Majd Badr, Adv. Abeer Baker
Editing: Adv. Irit Ballas, Adv. Bana Shoughry-Badarne
English Translation: Ron Makleff

Exposed-Treatment of Detainees Cast Lead_June 2010

Female prisoner Shirin Issawi beaten by Israeli offenders

[ 13/07/2010 - 05:00 PM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)-- The International Tadamun (Solidarity) Foundation for Human Rights, quoting prisoners in Hasharon prison, said that prisoner Shirin Issawi was attacked by a gang of female criminal offenders. Ahmed Beitawi, a researcher at the Tadamon foundation, noted the continued harassment prisoners are subjected to when leaving for court hearings, whether by the prison administration or Israeli inmates, pointing to the beating inflicted on lawyer Issawi by a group of civil prisoners in front of the Israeli Nahshon prison guards, who in turn did not move a muscle to stop the attacks. Beitawi said that the Issawi beating is not surprising, because the Israeli Prisons Authority (IPA) does not segregate security prisoners and criminal prisoners when transporting them to the buses, and there have been repeated cases with other prisoners. The foundation’s researcher clarified that Israeli female criminals are in most cases in detention for murder, theft, and drugs, and are usually violent and brutal in nature, and they deliberately harass Palestinian prisoners in order to justify their assaults against them. Abuse and Satire In the same context, female prisoner Ahlam Tamimi reported that the IPA violates prisoners’ privacy by reading letters sent by family and associates containing their feelings and emotions out loud in front of Israeli soldiers and other prisoners. Tamimi also underlined the IPA's deliberate acts aimed at embarrassing and provoking prisoners by making sarcastic remarks at some of the content of the letters, which in most cases are addressed to the prisoner’s husband or family, in a clear violation on the privacy of the prisoners, who feel that their letters are their only free space to express their feelings and emotions.

Hamas condemns sentence against Sheikh Salah as political

[ 13/07/2010 - 04:55 PM ]

DAMASCUS, (PIC)-- Hamas strongly condemned the Israeli court's sentence against Sheikh Raed Salah, the leader of the Islamic movement in 1948 occupied Palestine, describing it as political par excellence. Hamas said in a statement on Tuesday that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) wants to absent Sheikh Salah's role in defense of occupied Jerusalem and the Aqsa Mosque. It charged the IOA with trying to block the Sheikh's efforts to expose its settlement projects and judaization practices in Jerusalem, describing such an attempt as "desperate". Hamas held the IOA fully responsible for the safety of Sheikh Salah, and urged all free people of the world to display solidarity with him and to foil the Israeli practices aimed at eliminating all leaderships that defend Jerusalem and the Palestinian people's rights, referring in this respect to the deportation order against four Jerusalemite deputies from their native hometown. The Israeli magistrate court in Jerusalem on Tuesday sentenced Sheikh Salah to five months imprisonment after his lawyers had appealed against a previous sentence of nine months imprisonment term. The Sheikh, commenting on the verdict, said that any ruling by an occupying power is null and void, adding that it fell in line with attempts to complete judaization of Jerusalem and the Aqsa Mosque in a bid to build the mythical temple of Solomon. He affirmed that the sentence would not deter him from pursuing his support for the Aqsa and Jerusalem until the end of occupation.

Ahrar center calls for Palestinian moves to confront Shalit family's campaign

[ 13/07/2010 - 12:10 PM ]

NABLUS, (PIC)-- Al-Ahrar center for prisoners' studies and human rights called on families of Palestinian prisoners and human rights organizations to necessarily respond to the active moves made by the Shalit family to pressure their government to get their son released. The center called for taking action in response to the propaganda being made by the family of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who receive massive official and popular support. It urged the Palestinian authority and the Legislative council to develop joint plans to launch a national campaign in support of the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails to confront the one being organized by Shalit family who behave as if their son is the only detainee in the world. The human rights center also suggested enacting a Palestinian law prohibiting the resumption of peace negotiations with Israel before finding practical solutions to the issue of prisoners in its jails. The center noted that the Palestinian detainees are exposed to slow systematic killing and the enormity of Israel's violations against them have reached intolerable levels.