62 Palestinian women prisoners in Israeli jails; military court orders Lara Tarayreh’s release

There are currently 62 Palestinian women jailed in Israeli prisons, including 13 minor girls, according to the latest statistics released by Palestinian prisoner support organizations as of 2 August.

Another Palestinian young woman, Walaa Ayman al-Mahariq, 18, was arrested by Israeli occupation soldiers near the illegal settlement of Gush Etzion on Monday, 1 August outside Bethlehem as she walked down the street. Al-Mahariq, a resident of al-Samu village, was taken to Ofer military base and prison for interrogation, accused of possession of a knife.

noor-darwishThe military court hearing of Noor Darwish, one of a number of young Palestinian female students in Israeli prisons, was continued until 9 August. Darwish, along with fellow studens Hala Bitar and Salam Abu Sharar, was arrested on 19 April amid student elections at their university, Al-Quds University in Abu Dis. Bitar was recently sentenced to four months’ imprisonment for participating in a book fair organized by the Islamic Bloc on campus.

lara-tarayreh

Meanwhile, Lara Nasser al-Tarayreh, 21, was ordered released by the Ofer military court after one month of detention. Al-Tarayreh, from Bani Naim near al-Khalil, was arrested on 3 July in her home along with her brother. Both were accused of “incitement” for speaking to the media about their brother Mohammed’s participation in an armed attack on an Israeli settlement in which he was killed on 30 June. While the military court ordered Tarayreh’s release, the decision was postponed for 48 hours to provide the military prosecution with the opportunity to respond and seek her continued imprisonment. In many similar cases, including those of Palestinian Legislative Council member Khalida Jarrar and professor Imad Barghouthi, such orders of release have led only to continued imprisonment.