Palestinian child prisoner Natalie Shokha, 15, was once again denied family visits under the pretext of unspecified “security reasons” on Thursday, 11 January. Natalie, injured when she was shot by live bullets by Israeli occupation soldiers on 28 April 2016, has been consistently denied family visits since her arrest.
Natalie was recently sentenced to one and one-half years in Israeli prison; she is held in HaSharon prison with other women prisoners and minor girls. Her father said that he had only been allowed one visit with Natalie since her imprisonment. She was seized together with fellow child prisoner Tasneem Halabi, who was also sentenced to one and one-half years in prison just days ago.
Samidoun in New York recently highlighted Natalie’s case in a protest building the campaign to boycott Hewlett-Packard for the company’s role in profiteering from the occupation, oppression and imprisonment of Palestinians.
A letter from Natalie to her mother was widely distributed internationally:
My greetings to all of the generous people of my beloved village, Rammun. My greetings to the council of the village and to everyone who supports its development.
Mother, I am in now in prison a member of the cultural committee. I have also become a member of the magazine. I discuss novels and I am the fourth in reading. 🙁 Thank God at any rate.
Mom, Dad, everyone here is proud of your raising of me. Have your head held high. And I am living in the room with six other girls. We are the twelve flowers (security prisoners who are minor girls). We live together through bad and good times. Mom, please say hello to all and tell them I miss them so much and that I am sorry if I forgot anyone. May God bring us together, united, soon. God, bring us freedom now!
They will not imprison the scent of jasmine in a flower!
The prisoner Natalie Shokha
HaSharon Prison
Division 14
Natalie is one of over 300 Palestinian children imprisoned in Israeli prisons. Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network urges the immediate release of Natalie and all Palestinian child prisoners.
