Britain resumes bid to deport Bethlehem-born cleric

Preacher Abu Qatada is seen in this undated file image taken from television
footage, appealing for the release of Briton Norman Kember who was taken
hostage in Iraq. (Reuters/HO)

 Ma'an

LONDON (Reuters) -- Britain said on Tuesday it had re-arrested a Bethlehem-born cleric once described as Osama bin Laden's "right-hand man in Europe" and would resume plans to deport him to Jordan, where he has been convicted in his absence of involvement in terrorist plots.

Preacher Abu Qatada, who holds Jordanian nationality, has been under virtual house arrest at his family home in London since February, when he was freed from a British prison after a court said his detention without trial was unlawful.

The court's decision followed a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights in January that Qatada would not receive a fair trial in Jordan because evidence against him may have been obtained using torture.

The findings have embarrassed the British government, which maintains that Qatada is a national security risk, and prompted calls from politicians to defy the European court and deport the cleric before London hosts the Olympic Games in July and August.

Qatada, whose real name is Omar Othman, has been fighting attempts to deport him for six years and his case has become an important test of how Britain treats foreign suspects accused of having links with groups such as al-Qaida.

Britain says videotapes of his sermons were found in a German apartment used by three of the people who carried out al-Qaida's September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

A court in Jordan has found Qatada guilty in absentia of involvement in two bomb plots and a senior British judge has described him as a "truly dangerous" supporter of radical Islamist groups.

Qatada, a father of five, denies belonging to al-Qaida.

He was described as bin Laden's "right-hand man in Europe" by Spanish high court judge and human rights investigator Baltasar Garzon in 2004 after 191 people were killed by bombs put on board commuter trains in Madrid by Islamist militants.

British Home Secretary Theresa May, responsible for domestic security, traveled to Jordan in March to seek a deal that would allow the deportation to proceed by gaining assurances that torture evidence would not be used against Qatada.

She was due to update parliament later on the progress of negotiations with Jordan.

Qatada was expected to appear in a specialist court where the government would seek to overturn his bail and return him to prison.

"UK Border Agency officers have today arrested Abu Qatada and told him that we intend to resume deportation proceedings against him," the Home Office said in a statement.

Al-Qaida last week warned Britain against sending Qatada to Jordan, saying in a statement on an Islamist website that such a move would open the "door of evil" for the British government and its people.

Qatada was born in 1960 near Bethlehem, then controlled by Jordan and now part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Never formally charged with an offense, he has been in and out of custody since he was first detained under anti-terrorism laws in 2002.

Since his release Qatada has had to wear an electronic tag to allow the police to keep track of him and spend 22 hours a day at his family home. He was also banned from using the Internet and mobile phones.

On Palestinian Prisoners Day, the Suffering of Palestinian Prisoners in Israeli Jails Doubles

PCHR

Tuesday, 17 April 2012 07:00

Ref: 45/2012

Today, 17 April 2012, marks the Palestinian Prisoners Day, which has been devoted by the Palestinian people to support the cause of Palestinian prisoners detained in Israeli jails.  Since 1979, Palestinians have commemorated this day, which marks the anniversary of the release of Palestinian prisoners in the first prisoner swap deal of 17 April 1974.

This year, the Palestinian Prisoners Day comes at a time in which the suffering of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails doubles as a result of violations of their rights.  These violations have recently peaked by the forcible transfer and deportation of prisoners, the latest of which was the forcible transfer of a female prisoner, Hanaa Shalabi, to the Gaza Strip on 01 April 2012.

These violations are part of a systematic policy adopted by Israeli occupation authorities against Palestinian prisoners, subjecting them to cruel, inhuman and degrading conditions, denying them access to medical care, constituting medical negligence which has caused deaths; practicing methods of torture against them; placing some of them in solitary confinement; depriving them of family visitation; and banning them from receiving academic education, according to a decision issued by the Israeli Prison Service on 20 July 2011.[1]

According to the figures and statistics PCHR possesses, more than 4,700 Palestinian prisoners are still held in Israeli prisons and detention facilities, mostly inside Israel, in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, particularly Article 76 which stipulates that “protected persons accused of offences shall be detained in the occupied country, and if convicted they shall serve their sentences therein.” The majority of the Palestinian prisoners are from the West Bank, and they include 9 women and 190 children, as well as 320 prisoners who have been placed under administrative detention; the latter category includes 27 Members of the Palestinian Legislative Council and former ministers. 

PCHR expresses its utmost concern for the continued deprivation of family visitation of at least 475 Palestinian prisoners from the Gaza Strip, lasting more than five years now and causing deterioration to these prisoners’ psychological and health conditions in violation of international human rights law.  At least 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in a number of Israeli jails are expected to start an open ended hunger strike to pressurize the Israeli Prison Service to heed to their demands, including abolishing the policy of solitary confinement; ending the application of the Shalit Law; stopping attacks against prisoners, providing prisoners with adequate health care; and allowing family visitation to Gazan prisoners.  It is worth noting that at least 10 prisoners have been on hunger strike in protest against the policy of administrative detention. 

On the Palestinian Prisoners Day, PCHR draws the attention to escalated violations of the rights of Palestinian prisoners and the deterioration of their conditions because of Israel’s insistence to adopt a series of measures against them, which violate human rights principles and the international humanitarian law, which Israel, as a party to the relevant treaties, must respect.  PCHR also draws the attention to the international silence regarding such violations, which proves suspicions towards the international community’s disregard of international humanitarian law.   

Since its establishment, PCHR has systematically and continually followed up the cases of thousands of prisoners in Israeli jails.  PCHR has provided legal aid to prisoners and their families, and has documented and reported on violations of their rights.  In this context:

1. PCHR calls upon the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their obligations under the Convention;

2. PCHR calls upon international human rights organizations to follow up cases of Palestinian prisoners and request their governments to exert pressure on Israel to stop its illegal practices against Palestinian prisoners and release them;

3. PCHR calls upon the European Union to activate Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which provides that both sides must respect human rights as a precondition for economic cooperation between the EU states and Israel. 

---------------

[1] See “PCHR Condemns Punitive Measures against Palestinian Prisoners in Israeli Jails,” Press Release, Ref: 70/2011, PCHR, 21 July 2011.

Free at Last: Profiles of Courage

Ufree

On 18 October 2011, the first 477 of an eventual 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails were released in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured five years previously. Of the Palestinians who have or will be freed, 280 were serving life sentences and 27 were women. Most had been deprived of family visits for years, and had suffered repeated torture, sentences to solitary confinement and refused access to education. The release came as more than 6,000 Palestinian prisoners staged a hunger strike to protest the harsh conditions. While the release is good news welcomed throughout the occupied territories, some families will still be separated. Of the first 477 prisoners released, 110 were returned to their homes in the West Bank and 203 were deported to Jordan, Turkey, Qatar and Syria, which agreed to take prisoners who Israel insisted, must not be allowed to return home. The rest (131) were freed in Gaza -- even if they were not originally from there. The agreement is the highest “price” Israel has ever paid for a single soldier. Israel places a high value on Israeli life and freedom, and assigns little worth to Palestinians. Thus, captures and exchanges are the only way to win their release. Approximately 5,300 Palestinian prisoners remain in Israeli jails, waiting to be freed. Here are the stories of just two of the released Palestinians: Ayman Kafishah; jailed since April 1997: On April 5, 1997, Ayman was arrested by Israeli security forces and immediately transported to Ha Shikmah Prison in Israel. According to testimony he later delivered to the UN Commission on Human Rights and publicized by B’tselem, an Israeli human rights agency, Ayman was then interrogated nonstop for 36 hours. Tactics used to coerce him to talk included: Violent shaking. Forced squatting and sitting in painful, contorted positions for prolonged periods. Wrist cuffs tightened until blood flow was cut off. Sleep deprivation. Refusal of permission to use the toilet. Threats to arrest and torture his family members. Ayman was denied the right to consult with his lawyer for a full month, and was not allowed any family visits for the entire 14 years he was jailed. His daughter, Sarah, knew of her father only through photographs. Although Ayman was freed in the prisoner exchange for Shalit, his forced separation from his wife and daughter continues. He was immediately exiled to the Gaza Strip, and his family was denied permission to travel there to see him from the West Bank. They have seen him only on TV, waving to the crowds in Gaza. “I was awakened (on Oct. 18, 2011) to the sound of my mother calling me,” recalls Sarah Kafishah. “I got up and rushed towards my mother, who was sitting in front of the TV. My mother knelt on the ground and thanked God.” Sarah and her mother said in a statement that they thank the Palestinian negotiators and the Egyptian mediators for making the exchange happen. They also called on the international community to put pressure on Israel to allow Ayman’s family to leave the West Bank to visit him in Gaza. A 14-year separation is long enough. Obada Saeed Bilal; jailed since April 2002: A native of Nablus in the West Bank, Obada is the son of Saeed Bilal. Obada was studying journalism at Najah University when he was seized, during the Israeli military campaign on the West Bank codenamed "Defensive Shield." He was charged with being a supporter military activities, It was just two weeks after his marriage to Nelly AlSafadi. Obada was sentenced to 11 years in jail and subjected to intensive torture, along with a number of stays in solitary confinement -- one time longer than six months. Says Obada: “I endured many rounds of continuous interrogation, during which the physical and psychological torture was so harsh my body became exhausted and I lost consciousness many times.” Obada had always struggled with poor eyesight, but he went totally blind by the time he was released from prison. His family has paid a heavy price to the Israeli occupying force. Obada’s wife, Nelly and three brothers also served time in Israeli prisons. Nelly, who was released several months before Obada, was arrested at a roadblock while trying to enter Ramallah. Although Obada was later moved to the same prison in which she was being held, they were never allowed to be together.  Although Obada was freed in the prisoner exchange for Shalit, he was immediately exiled to the Gaza Strip and his wife Nelly was denied permission to travel there to see him. Both families are urging the international community and all human rights groups to put pressure on Israel to strop its daily integration to Palestinians on check points and crossing borders and it must immediately allow those families access through crossing borders.

Aruri: Israel's exile of prisoners strategic mistake

[ 25/10/2011 - 12:58 PM ]

DAMASCUS, (PIC)-- Senior Hamas official in charge of the prisoners' file Saleh Al-Aruri said Israel makes a strategic mistake when it exiles Palestinian prisoners from their occupied homeland. "The occupation's decision to banish prisoners cannot break their determination in terms of their insistence on struggling and fighting against the occupation, but on the contrary, this strengthens them and make them stronger and more motivated to resist and fight," Aruri said in a press release. He pointed out that the second batch of the swap deal, due to be completed within two months, would include the release of longtime prisoners jailed for alleged security reasons and they would return to their homes without any exile. In a related incident, Maariv newspaper said on Monday the majority of Palestinian prisoners released as part of the swap deal with Hamas Movement refused to sign a pledge not to return to resistance activities against Israel. A few hours before implementing the swap deal, Shabak officers visited the jails from which those prisoners were released and failed misrably to force them to sign a written plegde to give up their activities against Israel, according to Maariv.

Barghouti: Prisoners were not consulted over swap deal

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Detained Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti said Sunday that Hamas did not consult detainees over its prisoner swap deal with Israel.

Hamas has agreed to free Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for the release of 1,027 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

Several prominent political leaders, including Barghouti, were left out of the deal.

In a statement relayed by his lawyer Elias Sabagh, Barghouti said he had learned of the deal from media reports. Prison leaders -- including Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine secretary-general Ahmad Saadat -- were not involved in negotiations, Barghouti said.

Further, prisoners who will be exiled under the agreement were not informed of the decision. Over 200 prisoners will not be released to their homes, but will be deported to Gaza or abroad.

Barghouti is a charismatic and popular figure widely viewed as a contender to succeed Mahmoud Abbas as president.

Swap Deal Officially Kicked-Off

Tuesday October 18, 2011 09:49 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

The prisoner-swap deal signed between Hamas and Israel has effectively entered the implementation process after the Israeli High Court of Justice rejected all appeals filed by Israelis against it. Shalit is now in Egypt; Egyptian sources reported. Hundreds of detainees loaded onto buses in preparation for their release.

Gilad Shalit

The deal will set 1027 Palestinian detainees free on two phases in exchange for the release of corporal Gilad Shalit. Media sources reported that Shalit was moved to Egypt in preparation to be handed to Israel after it releases the first 477 detainees.

Egyptian media sources reported that Shalit was moved to Egypt and is now in the hands of the Egyptian security services awaiting to be moved back to Israel.

Shalit reportedly crossed into Egypt when an SUV loaded with Palestinian fighters crossing the border towards Egypt, and quickly drove back to the Palestinian side of the border after handing Shalit to Egypt.

The second phase will ensure the release of 550 detainees two months after the first phase is concluded.

The implementation of the first phase of the deal started at 2 on Tuesday at dawn when 96 detainees were moved from the Negev Detention Camp to the Ofer Prison in preparation to be released into the West Bank.

334 detainees were loaded onto buses that will drive them to the Kerem Shalom (Karem Abu Salem) Crossing between Israel and Gaza.

On Tuesday around 4 at dawn, a bus loaded with 27 female detainees, 16 detainees from Jerusalem, and three from the 1948 territories drove off on its way to release them. Four female detainees were sent to Karem Abu Salem Crossing, while one detainee from the Golan Heights was moved to a local police station. Three detainees from the 1948 territories were moved to Majiddo Prison in preparation for their release.

On Monday evening, the Israeli High Court rejected four appeals filed by Israelis against the deal, stated that the swap-deal is totally legal, and granted the deal a green-light.

Palestinian Minister of Detainees in the West Bank, Issa Qaraqe', stated that Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, will personally welcome the West Bank released detainees at his headquarters in Ramallah. Leaders of different factions and institutions will be attending the ceremony.

The Hamas movement in Gaza also concluded its preparations for welcome the detainees who will be sent to Gaza. 163 detainees will be sent to the Rafah Border Terminal before heading to Gaza.

40 detainees will be forced into exile, while Hamas' Political Bureau head, Khaled Mashal, will be holding an official ceremony in Cairo to welcome them.

Israeli military and security sources reported that the army is preparing to counter any scenario that could jeopardize the deal, especially after Shalit is handed to Egyptian mediators.

Before being sent back home, Israel wants to conduct a comprehensive medical checkup on Shalit before he is airlifted to a military base in Israel, where his parents will be waiting for him. He will likely undergo another checkup at the second base before he is sent back home with his family.

Israel imposed media restrictions at the base in order to ensure privacy for Shalit and his family.

Shalit will be meeting Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, and Israeli Army Chief of Staff, Benny Gantz.

Resheq: Turkey, Jordan, Syria to receive exiled prisoners

[ 17/10/2011 - 11:04 AM ]

BEIRUT, (PIC)-- Turkey, Jordan, and Syria have expressed readiness to host the 40 Palestinian prisoners who will be freed from Israeli jails on condition of being banished outside Palestine, political bureau member of Hamas Ezzet Al-Resheq revealed. He said in a press statement on Monday that preparations would be finalized within the next two days for hosting those ex-prisoners in those countries. He said that a senior Hamas delegation led by its supreme leader Khaled Mishaal would fly to Cairo on Monday to receive and honor the liberated prisoners. Resheq said that contacts were made with PA chief and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas to turn the occasion (receiving the freed prisoners) into a national occasion reflecting unity of the Palestinian people. Hamas official: Qatar, Turkey to host prisoners Published today (updated) 17/10/2011 15:17   A Palestinian groom is carried by his friend as he celebrates his wedding and a prisoner swap between Hamas and Israel, in front of the headquarters of the International Red Cross in Gaza City October 14, 2011. (REUTERS/Mohammed Salem) BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzouq said on Monday that three countries are willing to host Palestinian detainees set to be released under a recent exchange deal between Hamas and Israel. Marzouq, deputy head of the Hamas politburo, told the London based pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat that Qatar and Turkey had agreed to host exiled prisoners. Al-Hayat mentioned that Syria could also be among the countries willing to receive released detainees. Turkish media said Friday that Turkey would accept all those exiled abroad. A Hamas delegation headed by Khaled Mashaal will arrive in Cairo later on Monday to welcome released prisoners, Marzouq said. The first stage of the prisoner swap is set to take place in the Egyptian Sinai, with Israel transferring some 430 Palestinian prisoners to a holding facility in the Negev desert on Sunday in preparation for the exchange on Tuesday. Abu Marzouq praised Egypt's role in mediating negotiations for the prisoner deal to exchange 1,027 Palestinian detainees for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Several countries offered to facilitate the swap, Marzouq said, but the final mediators had to be agreed on between Israel and Hamas. The Hamas official also apologized for any misunderstanding over the number of female detainees to be released. Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal had described the list of 27 women due to be released as all female prisoners held by Israel. Marzouq confirmed, however, that 9 female prisoners are not part of the prisoner deal. While some of the 477 prisoners due to be released this week will go home to the West Bank and Gaza Strip, almost half will be exiled. Some 40 detainees will be deported to third countries and 163 to Gaza. According to the latest figures provided by the Palestinian Authority, there are around 6,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails. The majority remaining in prison have vowed to continue a hunger strike launched on Sept. 27, in protest against worsening conditions in Israeli prisons.

Hamas releases names of prisoners to be freed

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Hamas-affiliated website al-Aqsa posted a list of prisoners it said were due to be released in coming days as part of the prisoner swap with Israel.

Israel and Hamas reached an agreement Tuesday to release over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for an Israeli soldier held by Gaza militants since 2006.

A senior Palestinian official familiar with the deal told Ma'an on Wednesday that 450 prisoners would be released in "10 to 14 days," and a further 550 detainees will be freed in two months. Israel will choose which prisoners to release in the second phase, the official said.

Some 203 prisoners from the West Bank will not return home: 40 will be exiled outside to other countries and the rest will be sent to Gaza, the official said.

Sources close to the negotiations told Ma'an on Thursday that the prisoners would be freed at the same time as Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, and that prisoners who will be sent to the Gaza Strip will be released into Egypt, and will enter Gaza via the Rafah crossing.

The list published on al-Aqsa TV website includes prominent figures including Hamas leader Yehya al-Sinwar and the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner in Israeli jail Nael al-Barghouthi.

The eldest Palestinian detainee Sami Younis, 78, will also be released, the site said.

IOA deports 17 foreign solidarity activists

[ 13/10/2011 - 10:20 AM ]

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) deported 17 European solidarity activists from the West Bank after two days of detention for participating in pro Palestinian rallies. Sources in the solidarity campaign with detained Palestinian leader Ahmed Saadat said that the activists were detained on Sunday night while demonstrating in front of the Nafha jail in solidarity with the Palestinian prisoners, including Saadat, who are on hunger strike. They said that the activists were held and interrogated at a police station on the charge of supporting a “hostile Palestinian organization”. The sources noted that the activists were banned from contacting anyone until they were taken two days later in military vehicles to the Ben Gurion airport where they were deported. The campaign managers charged the IOA with trying to restrict foreign participation in Palestinian solidarity rallies, adding that they would continue, nevertheless, in supporting Palestinian just struggle against occupation.

ICRC: Israel must comply with law over MP's detention

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The International Committee of the Red Cross on Monday urged Israel to comply with international humanitarian law following the detention of a Palestinian lawmaker.

Israeli police on Monday stormed a protest tent in front of the Red Cross offices in Jerusalem and detained Hamas-affiliated MP Ahmad Attoun.

"In connection with the arrest of Ahmed Attoun, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, in Jerusalem today, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is calling upon the Israeli authorities to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law," a statement said.

"Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 prohibits Israel, regardless of its motive, from forcibly transferring Palestinians.

"Under international humanitarian law, East Jerusalem is an occupied territory, and its Palestinian residents are protected persons within the meaning of Article 4 of the Fourth Geneva Convention," the statement added.

Ahmad Attoun had taken shelter in the ICRC building along with another Hamas legislator and a former Hamas government minister after Israeli authorities revoked their Jerusalem residency permits.

An Israeli police spokesman and a security guard at the ICRC building said paramilitary police disguised as Palestinians had grabbed Attoun at the entrance to the offices and arrested him.

Attoun was taken into custody a day after President Mahmoud Abbas mentioned the men's case in a speech on his return to the occupied West Bank from the United Nations, where he applied for recognition of full Palestinian statehood.

The other two Hamas men remained inside the ICRC building.

In the speech, Abbas accused Israel of "ethnic cleansing" that included "decisions to expel elected representatives" from Jerusalem.

In a statement issued in June 2010, after Israel ordered them to leave Jerusalem, the three Hamas men wrote: "We as sons of Jerusalem have never left it before ... we emphasize that we will remain here and never leave it."

The ICRC said it had informed the three Hamas members that ICRC premises had no special status and the ICRC could not prevent police entering the building to arrest them.

Reuters contributed to this report

Fatah secretary released after being detained in Silwan

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Fatah secretary Adnan Ghaith was released by Israeli authorities on Thursday, Palestinian security sources said.

Ghaith had been detained by Israeli forces on Wednesday in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.

The Fatah official was expelled from Jerusalem in January by Israeli authorities and banned from entering the city for eight months. He was arrested hours after returning to Jerusalem.

Israeli authorities fined Ghaith 5,000 shekels and forbid him from entering Silwan for a period of 20 days, security sources told Ma'an.

Israeli forces detain Hamas lawmaker

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces detained Hamas legislator Mohammed Abu Teir on Tuesday, army officials said.

Israeli soldiers ransacked Abu Teir's home in Kafr Aqab, south of Ramallah, before detaining the elected official, a Ma'an correspondent reported.

An Israeli military spokesman said Abu Teir was detained on Tuesday but could not immediately comment on the reason for his arrest.

Former PA Minister of Jerusalem affairs Khalid Abu Arafa told Ma’an he was concerned about Abu Teir's fate after Israel withdrew his Jerusalem identity card.

In December, an Israeli court expelled Abu Teir to Ramallah from his home in Jerusalem for the second time, after four months in jail for defying a previous ban.

He was previously arrested on June 30, 2010 for entering East Jerusalem after the interior ministry stripped him of his residence permit for his activity in Hamas.

Following Abu Teir's deportation to Ramallah in December, UN officials expressed concern. Robert Serry, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, said he was "worried" about the "potential precedent" that the trial set.

Abu Teir was elected to the Palestinian parliament from East Jerusalem in 2006 when Hamas won a landslide victory over the secular Fatah movement of Western-backed President Mahmoud Abbas.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Middle East war and unilaterally annexed it shortly after. About 200,000 Palestinians live there.

Israel regards the whole of Jerusalem as its "eternal, indivisible" capital, while the Palestinians lay claim to its eastern sector as the capital of their promised state.

Report: Israel arrested 15, deported 30 pro-Palestinian activists in August

[ 03/09/2011 - 05:07 PM ]

PARIS, (PIC)-- Some 15 activists were arrested and 30 were deported last month in a wave of incitement against pro-Palestinian activists, a French rights group said in a report marking the end of August. The report says extremist Israeli groups are behind what it called an “incitement campaign” led by the Zionist lobby, with support from anti-Arab, anti-Muslim organizations in Europe. The report adds that pro-Palestinians who joined the “flotilla” last month were not only arrested in Tel Aviv, but they were also dismissed from their jobs and their pictures were posted on Facebook along with comments: “These are the enemies...supporters of the anti-Semites”. The Zionist lobby and the Israeli foreign ministry have used pressure on many states to ban pro-Palestinian activities, the statement says, pointing out that the Israeli army arrested last month alone 15 foreign activists in separate locations and placed them under interrogation in harsh circumstances and prevented them from entering the occupied Palestinian territories. It also deported thirty activists who were arrested in Jerusalem and locations across the West Bank and prevented them from entering the territories saying they posed a threat to security. The organization said it was deeply concerned over the dangerous escalation against pro-Palestinian activists in what it called an attempt to isolate the Palestinians and impose inhumane policies on them. The statement confirmed that the pro-Palestinian campaign would continue to support the just Palestinian struggle until its objectives are attained and the Palestinians achieve an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital. It also called on delegations to go to Palestine and join in demanding freedom and independence for the Palestinians and a seat in the United Nations.

The Israeli Court Deferred the Sentence of Deportation to Next July

The International Campaign for Releasing the Abducted MPs states that the Israeli court  which is called “ Supreme   Court”  decided to appeal in the case of the Jerusalemite MPs in 26th of next July.

The campaign assured that postponing the sentence of the deportation is clear evidence  of the lack of justifications of the Israeli Minister of Interior  to confiscate their identities.

It stressed the need of the International stands to stop the arbitrary decisions of the occupation against the symbols of legitimacy.

It is worth mentioning that the Israeli occupation delayed the sentence of the Jerusalemite MPS ( Muhammad Totah and Ahmad Atoun ) and the former minister , Khalid Abu Arafah, during the session held four days ago.

The International Campaign Publishes the Israeli Violation in the Palestinian Prisoner Day

The International Campaign/ Special 

17/4/2011

The International Campaign for Releasing the Abducted MPs publishes the Israeli violation against the MPs since the last April in the Palestinian Prisoner Day.

It asserted that the past year witnesses series of violation against the MPs and their families. It added “the occupation is still refusing the results of the Palestinian democratic elections and doing all efforts to cancel the transparent results"

Policy of Re-abduction

The campaign pointed out that the occupation had re-abducted nine of the Change and Reform Bloc MPs and transferred them to the administrative detention who are “ Hatem Qefisha, Mahmoud El Ramahi, Nayef Rojoob, Muhammad El Tal, Khalil El Rabaie, Omer Abdel Razek, Muhammad El Natsha, Azam Salhab, and Muhammad Badr”

Breaking into Houses

The campaign added “  the scene of breaking into houses before abduction is repeated with the nine MPs in addition of breaking into the house of  MP Muhammad Abu Jihesha  and the MP threatened to be deported, Ahmad Atoun, for two times”

Abduction of Relatives

The campaign stated that the occupation practices all methods of repression  against the MPs and their families as it abducted 7 members of their families who are ( son of Abu Jihesha, son of Omer Abdel Razeq, nephew of Atoun, son of Halayqa, son of El Ramahi, and brother of Qifesha)"

Deprivation from Performing El Haj

The campaign added that “ the occupation does not stop violating the personal human rights of the MPs. For example, the occupation deprived ( MP. Abdel Rahman Zeidan, Muhammad El Tal and Muhammad Abu Jihesha and Samir El Qadi) from performing pilgrimage last year.

From Abduction to Deportation

The campaign continued publishing the most serious violation committed by the Israeli occupation which is issuing the decision of deportation against the Jerusalemite MPs  ( Muhammad Abu Teer, Muhammad Totah, and Ahmad Atoun) and the former minister, Khalid Abu Arafah, after their release from the Israeli jails.

he campaign mentioned that the occupation had abducted MP. Muhammad Abu Teer on 30th of June,2010 from his house then he was deported to the West Bank on 8th of December,2010.  Atoun, Totah and Abu Arafah resorted to the headquarter of the Red Cross for refusing the unjust decision of deportation since 1st of July,2010 till this moment.

The campaign warned from the Israeli schemas targeting to evacuate the city from their citizens starting with the symbols of the Palestinian people

Calling for Urgent Steps

The International Campaign called the (parliamentary, legal and human rights) International institutions to hold their responsibilities in defending the human rights and the principles of democracy and to try the Israeli criminals who violate the norms of the International law and Forth Geneva Convention."

Palestinian detainee exiled to Malaysia

14-04-2011,12:55

 

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Al Qassam website - Detainee Maher Odah, 48, from Ein Yabroud village near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, was forced into exile on Wednesday evening after the Israeli government decided to deport him to Malaysia.

Odah was kidnapped by the Israeli army on March 14, 2010, after being perused by the for eight years.

He was placed under interrogation and was subjected to extreme torture for 45 days without being allowed to see a lawyer, before he was placed under administrative detention without charges or trial.

The Ahrar Center for Detainees Studies and Human Rights reported that Israeli prison officials and interrogators repeatedly told Odah that he will never be released unless he is deported.

His wife told the Ahrar Center on Wednesday that she received a phone call from an Israeli prison official who informed her that her husband was released, and was deported to Malaysia.

The Center denounced the ongoing Israeli violations against the detainees, and the illegal deportation orders as they violate the international law and the Fourth Geneva Conventions.

It demanded the International Community to act against the Israeli violations against the detainees and the ongoing violations and attacks against the Palestinian people.

Israel’s release of Palestinian political prisoners could boost peace prospects – Ban

 UN news center

7 March 2011 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called for urgently addressing the plight of the thousands of Palestinian political prisoners detained by Israel, saying it is an important issue in the search for a just and lasting peace between the two sides. When Mr. Ban visited the occupied Palestinian territory and Israel a year ago, he had expressed concerns about the Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli detention facilities, and publicly urged Israel to release prisoners as called for by the Palestinian Authority.
“Such a release would serve as a significant confidence-building measure,” he stated today in a message to the United Nations International Meeting on the Question of Palestine that opened in Vienna, adding the world body will continue to raise the issue with the Israeli leadership.
Nearly 100 representatives of Governments, parliaments, intergovernmental organizations, lawyers, civil society and UN agencies are taking part in the two-day meeting, whose theme is “The urgency of addressing the plight of Palestinian political prisoners in Israeli prisons and detention facilities.”
In his message – which was delivered by Maxwell Gaylard, Deputy UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory – Mr. Ban said the UN continues to follow closely the well-being of those in detention, including some 200 minors and 200 individuals held in administrative detention without trial.
He also noted with concern that elected Palestinian representatives have been detained by Israel, and that even after their release, three from East Jerusalem are under threat of forcible transfer and are residing at the Red Cross premises, while another has been deported to Ramallah.
“The United Nations opposes measures of forcible transfer and remains engaged on this issue, which has broader implications for the human rights of Palestinian East Jerusalemites,” he stated.
The Secretary-General also reiterated the calls of the UN for humanitarian access to be granted to Israeli Staff Sergeant Gilat Shalit, who has been held captive by Palestinian militants for over four years, and for his release.
“Momentous changes are sweeping the region, and it is deeply frustrating that efforts to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace remain at an impasse,” the Secretary-General said, adding that among the main obstacles are settlements, which are illegal and contrary to the Road Map peace plan that seeks to establish a two-State solution of Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security within recognized borders.
“It remains Israel’s obligation to freeze settlement activity,” he said, calling on the international community to intensify efforts to help the parties overcome the current obstacles and achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace.

Troops Kidnap Elected Legislator In Hebron

Wednesday December 01, 2010 12:01 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

Israeli soldiers kidnapped, on Wednesday at dawn, legislator Sheikh Khalil Nayef Rajoub, after breaking into his home and searching it.

Legislator Khalil Nayef Rajoub - Image Palestine-Info

His family stated that soldiers surrounded their home located west of Hebron, approximately at 1 a.m., and kidnapped the legislator taking him to an unknown destination.

Fu’ad al-Khuffash, head of the Ahrar Center for Detainees Studies and Human Rights, reported that the soldiers violently broke into the home of Rajoub and informed him that they have an arrest warrant against him.

Al-Khuffash added that the kidnapping of Rajoub is regarded as a “declaration of a new war against elected legislators and officials, and another attempt to kidnap the legislators” similar to the massive arrests targeting dozens of elected legislators and officials on June 29, 2006.

He stated that the army kidnapped three legislators in the last 45 days; the three are Hatem Qfeisha, Mahmoud al-Ramahi, and today’s kidnapping of Rajoub.

Legislator Rajoub spent four years in Israeli prisons as he was kidnapped on June 29 2006, and was only released five months ago. He was also one of several Hamas officials deported by Israel to Marj al-Zohour in southern Lebanon.

Al-Khuffash demanded international human rights groups to intervene and stop the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people and their elected officials.

On December 17, 1992, Israel arrested and deported 416 members of the Hamas movement and the Islamic Jihad. The deported leaders camped near the borders and held a strike until Israel was forced to allow them back due to international pressure.

Palestinian lawmaker detained in Israeli raid

Published Wednesday 01/12/2010 (updated) 02/12/2010 22:05

NABLUS (Ma’an) -- Israeli forces detained a Hamas lawmaker Tuesday in Hebron, a prisoners rights group said.

Soldiers raided the home of Nayef Ar-Rujoub overnight, ordering him to get dressed before arresting him, the Ahrar center said.

Only five months earlier, Ar-Rujoub was released from an Israeli after serving a four-year sentence.

An Israeli military spokesman confirmed the arrest in Dura, a village near Hebron, but refused to comment on the reason for his detention, saying he was one of seven Palestinians picked up overnight.

Hamas later "firmly" denounced the arrest of Rajub "by the Zionist occupation forces which continue to hold 10 other members" of the Islamist group.

"This is a heinous crime committed against the Palestinian people's representatives, and a violation of international laws," Hamas said in a statement issued in Damascus.

Hamas has called on "the security services of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and prime minister Salam Fayyad to stop all forms of coordination" with Israel.

Rajub, the former Palestinian minister for religious affairs, was released in June after serving four years behind bars.

He is the brother of Jibril Rajub, one of the leaders of Abbas's secular Fatah movement, which has been embroiled in a bitter dispute with Hamas for years.

The MP was one of more than 60 elected Hamas officials arrested in June 2006 after Gaza militants captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in a deadly cross-border raid. Many of those officials have since been freed.

Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, has demanded the release of hundreds of Palestinians held in Israeli jails, including several top militants convicted of deadly attacks, in exchange for Shalit, who is being held in a secret location in the coastal enclave.

The last round of talks over Shalit, mediated by Egypt and Germany, ground to a halt late last year when Israel presented an offer to which Hamas has not yet officially responded.

Israel and Hamas have each blamed the other for failing to reach a deal.

AFP contributed to this report

Israel expels two Swedes from occupied Palestine

[ 08/11/2010 - 06:22 PM ]

NAZARETH, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) detained and later expelled two Swedish citizens, one of them was a lawmaker, upon their arrival in the occupied Palestinian territories. The two were participants in Freedom Flotilla aid convoy that were attacked on its way to the besieged Gaza Strip last May by the Israeli navy troops who killed nine Turks and wounded dozens of other passengers. The Hebrew radio reported Monday morning that the IOA refused to allow Swedish lawmaker of Turkish origin Mohamed Kaplan to enter the occupied Palestinian lands upon his arrival last night, claiming that he did not hold a visa to Israel. A spokeswoman for the Israeli foreign ministry affirmed that another Swedish citizen who came along with Kaplan was also denied entry, saying that both of them were expelled because of their participation in Freedom Flotilla convoy.

Detainee still in jail months after serving term

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Protesting a 3-month delay of his release, a Gaza man held in Israel's Negev prison went on hunger strike Monday, a prisoners support group reported.

Shadi Abu Al-Hussein, 34, from the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, was due for release on 31 August but has remained in an isolation cell.

An Israeli prison service spokesman confirmed that Abu Al-Hussein had completed his sentence but "is being held in legal custody awaiting deportation."

According to the prisoners center, he was being held because he does not have an Israeli-issued ID card, which acts as identification for the Israeli government, military and public services. The prison service spokesman was unable to confirm that this was the reason behind the delay.

Officials at Israel's Ministry of the Interior, where identity cards are issued, were not available for comment.

In 2009, estimates showed at least 5,000 people in Gaza were awaiting family reunification permits from Israel. Although Israeli forces withdrew from the Strip in 2005, taking with them 8,500 settlers, the military maintains strict control of the borders. Relatives are rarely allowed to visit loved ones in prison.

In recent months, prisoners with ID cards registering them in Gaza, but who had lived in the West Bank with their spouses or relatives, were deported to Gaza without recourse to the courts.