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19 January, Brussels: Demonstration for Lebanon and Palestine

Sunday, 19 January
6:00 pm
Franklin Rooseveltlaan 101
Brussels, Belgium
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1467621210028698/

Brussels component of this day of action: a rally will take place in front of the Lebanese Embassy, Avenue Franklin Roosevelt 101, in 1050 Brussels, on 1/19 at 6 p.m.

The uprising of the Lebanese people against corruption and the economic policies which aim to make people pay for the crisis in the system is part of a vast movement of struggles which crosses the continents.

Among the means used by the elites to divide peoples: confessionalism and communitarianism. This practice of “divide and rule” is deeply rooted in Lebanon: instituted by the French, it has been taken up by all the dominant forces: semi-feudal, comprador and bourgeois.

And it is one of the great qualities of the uprising in these recent weeks to unite workers, intellectuals, agricultural workers, students, and members of the petty bourgeoisie regardless of their respective confessions and communities. The violence of the reaction of the communitarian parties, which launch their militiamen against the demonstrators with the complicity of the security forces, shows the importance of the stake.

Also important is the presence in the movement of the demand for the release of Georges Abdallah. Georges Abdallah is an international figure who embodies anti-imperialist and anti-Zionist resistance. It also embodies this revolutionary heritage which, turning its back on communitarianism, has put forward revolutionary internationalism as a central element of liberation between peoples.

The figure of Georges Abdallah also recalls the importance of the struggle for a free, secular and democratic Palestine. The capitulations of Oslo, the prospects of an “Arab-Muslim state” alongside a “Jewish state” can only satisfy those elites who collaborate with imperialism and who make their fortune on the backs of their people. Should we remind that Ahmad Sa’adat, secretary general of the PFLP, the main force opposing the Oslo Accords, was imprisoned by the Palestinian Authority before being imprisoned by Israel?

To support the struggle of the Lebanese people and to call for the release of Georges Abdallah,
To support the struggle of the Palestinian people and to call for the release of Ahmad Sa’adat,
The International Red Help, the “Lebanon’s Uprising”, Arab Red Help, and Samidoun are calling for an International Day of Action on Sunday January 19.

 

Le soulèvement du peuple libanais contre la corruption et les politiques économiques qui visent à faire payer au peuple la crise du système s’inscrit dans un vaste mouvement de luttes qui traverse les continents.

Parmi les moyens utilisés par les élites pour diviser les peuples : le confessionnalisme et le communautarisme. Cette pratique du « diviser pour régner » est profondément ancrée au Liban : instituée par les Français, elle a été reprise par toutes les forces dominantes : semi-féodales, compradores et bourgeoises.

Et c’est une des grandes qualités du soulèvement de ces dernières semaines d’unir les ouvriers, intellectuels, travailleurs agricoles, étudiants, et membres de la petite-bourgeoisie indépendamment de leurs confessions et communautés respectives. La violence de la réaction des partis communautaristes, qui lancent leurs miliciens contre les manifestants avec la complicité des forces de sécurité, montre l’importance de l’enjeu.

Important aussi est la présence, dans le mouvement, de la revendication de la libération de Georges Abdallah. Georges Abdallah est une figure internationale qui incarne la résistance anti-impérialiste et anti-sioniste. Il incarne aussi cet héritage révolutionnaire qui, tournant le dos au communautarisme, a mis en avant l’internationalisme révolutionnaire comme élément central de la libération entre les peuples.

La figure de Georges Abdallah rappelle aussi l’importance de la lutte pour une Palestine libre, laïque et démocratique. Les capitulation d’Oslo, les perspectives d’un « État arabo-musulman » à côté d’un « État juif » ne peuvent satisfaire que ces élites qui collaborent avec l’impérialisme et qui font leur fortune sur le dos de leur peuple. Faut-il rappeler qu’Ahmad Sa’adat, secrétaire général du FPLP, la principale force s’opposant aux accord d’Oslo, a été emprisonné par l’Autorité Palestinienne avant de l’être par Israël ?

Pour soutenir la lutte du peuple libanais et pour appeler à la libération de Georges Abdallah, pour soutenir la lutte du peuple palestinien et pour appeler à la libération d’Ahmad Sa’adat, le Secours Rouge International, le « Liban se soulève », le Secours Rouge Arabe, et Samidoun appellent à une Journée internationale d’action dimanche 19 janvier.

Volet bruxellois de cette journée d’action : un rassemblement aura lieu devant l’ambassade libanaise, Avenue Franklin Roosevelt 101, à 1050 Bruxelles, le 19/1 à 18h.

Video: Khaled Barakat calls for participation in action call to free Sa’adat, Palestinian prisoners

15 January marks the launch of two weeks of action, called by the Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat and Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, to organize events around the world in solidarity with imprisoned Palestinians struggling for freedom.

In this video, Khaled Barakat, Palestinian writer and the international coordinator of the Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat, speaks about why it is so important for people to join the actions to demand freedom for all Palestinian prisoners.

Watch the video:

Barakat notes the important struggles taking place inside Israeli jails, including the fight to end administrative detention – Israeli imprisonment without charge or trial – stop torture and free imprisoned Palestinian children.

“It is very important for us to reflect the real image of our prisoners: Our leaders, our student movement leaders, our feminist movement leaders, our labor movement leaders. These are the Palestinian prisoners confronting the occupation on a daily basis…When we stand in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners, we stand in solidarity with Palestinian resistance,” Barakat says.

He highlighted the ongoing attacks against Palestinian prisoners, noting that right-wing, racist Israeli politicians like Gilad Erdan were escalating the repression against the prisoners in Israeli jails at the same time that they are attempting to criminalize the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign and Palestine solidarity around the world. (Erdan holds both the Ministry of Public Security – over the Israel Prison Service – and the Ministry of Strategic Affairs, the so-called anti-BDS ministry, in the Netanyahu regime.)

Barakat also noted that the struggle of Palestinian prisoners is not separate from the struggle of fellow prisoners in imperialist and reactionary jails around the world, emphasizing the experience of Georges Abdallah, jailed for 35 years in French prison, U.S. political prisoners – including Palestinians like the Holy Land Five – and political prisoners held in Turkey, the Philippines, Colombia and by reactionary Arab regimes.

In conclusion, he expressed his conviction that the struggle of the Palestinian people will continue until victory and liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea.

Call to action and schedule of events: https://samidoun.net/2020/01/schedule-of-actions-and-events-15-29-january-free-ahmad-saadat-and-all-palestinian-prisoners/

Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat statement: http://freeahmadsaadat.org/2020/01/14/on-the-anniversary-of-ahmad-saadats-abduction-by-the-palestinian-authority-security-services/

Schedule of Actions and Events: 15-29 January – Free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian Prisoners

The Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat and Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network have called for weeks of action between 15 and 29 January 2020 to free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian prisoners. We have been joined by a call for a day of action for the liberation of Georges Abdallah on 19 January.

As the Weeks of Action begin today, we note that this day also marks the 18th anniversary of Sa’adat’s abduction by the Palestinian Authority security forces, the first step of his imprisonment. Today, he and his comrades are held in Israeli jails, continuing their struggle for freedom and for the liberation of Palestine. The Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat released a statement on this important anniversary as the Weeks of Action begin, noting:

“1) This crime constitutes an open wound that will not heal, will not be forgotten and will remain an eternal disgrace for the perpetrators. We can only achieve justice by holding all of those responsible accountable and bringing them before a trial of the people for what they have done against a great national resistance leader.

2) This unforgivable crime requires us to strike the walls of the tank again and again on the necessity of bringing an end to the policy of security coordination, which is a treacherous stab in the side of our resistance and our people.

3) On the anniversary of this crime, we value and highly appreciate all of the events and activities that will be organized in support of Ahmad Sa’adat and the prisoners’ movement during the next two weeks between 15 and 30 January, which the Campaign, the Samidoun Network and a number of friendly forces have called for. We remind all of the urgent need to raise your voices loudly for the prisoners’ movement which is being subjected to a massive Zionist assault.”

Our initial list of events is posted below, with actions in Toulouse, Brussels, Gothenburg, Paris, Vancouver and more. We know events and actions are being organized now, and we urge all to participate on the 25 January Day of Action against U.S. war and imperialism in Iraq and Iran. 

Please let us know about your events! Use this form or email samidoun@samidoun.net. Let us know – whether you’re including this campaign in a larger action or organizing your own action, we want to make sure to spread the word! 

List of Actions | Call to Organize | Take Action | Sa’adat Writings | Posters | Distribution Materials

Languages: English | Arabic | French | Dutch | Swedish | German | Turkish | Greek | Italian | Spanish | Danish

Actions for the 15-22 January Call to Free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian Prisoners

Please let us know about your events! Use this form or email samidoun@samidoun.net. Let us know – whether you’re including this campaign in a larger action or organizing your own action, we want to make sure to spread the word! 

We urge all supporters of Palestine and defenders of freedom for the Palestinian people to join us between 15 and 29 January 2020 in weeks of action to free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. 

Ahmad Sa’adat is the imprisoned General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a Palestinian national liberation movement leader and a symbol of the international left and revolutionary movements. He was sentenced to 30 years in Israeli prison on 25 December 2008, accused of leading a prohibited organization and “incitement.” The PFLP, like all Palestinian political parties and resistance organizations, is labeled a “prohibited organization” by the Israeli occupation authorities.

We urge international action for the freedom of Sa’adat, his comrades, and all Palestinian prisoners, because their imprisonment is an international affair. In the case of Sa’adat and his comrades, this year marks the 18th anniversary of their imprisonment by the Palestinian Authority under “security coordination” with the Israeli occupation, a practice that continues to this day – to the detriment of Palestinian students and resistance organizers, who are imprisoned in PA jails in a “revolving door” with the Israeli occupation. 

While held in the PA’s Jericho Prison, Sa’adat and his comrades were held under U.S. and British guards, making clear that this imprisonment was anything but an exercise of Palestinian sovereignty. Indeed, some of those same British guards previously served to guard Irish Republican prisoners in the occupied North of Ireland. 

On 13 March 2006 –following the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in which Sa’adat himself was elected to the PLC and supporters of “security coordination” sustained significant losses, while the winning Change and Reform bloc pledged to free PA political prisoners –Israeli occupation forces violently attacked Jericho prison. The U.S. and British guards cleared out in advance in a prearranged agreement with the occupation forces –but the occupation forces killed two Palestinian guards. 

Ahmad Sa’adat is a Palestinian, Arab and international symbol of resistance to capitalism, racism, apartheid and colonization. Targeted for his political role and clarity of vision, he remains a leader of the Palestinian prisoners’ movement and the national liberation struggle behind bars, unable to be silenced despite the oppression imposed upon him and his 5,000 fellow Palestinian political prisoners. He urges supporters of justice for Palestine around the world to boycott Israel.

His case highlights the role of U.S. and British imperialism in the subjugation of the Palestinian people and the theft of Palestinian land as well as the subservient role of the Palestinian Authority that continues “security coordination” with the very Israeli occupation that steals Palestinian land, resources and lives on a daily basis.

We also note that prisoners of the Palestinian liberation movement continue to be held in international jails as well, especially Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, jailed in France for 35 years despite being eligible for release since 1999, and we join the call for their liberation. 

The attack on the Palestinian people is continuing and intensifying. Palestinians in Gaza are fighting to break the siege, Palestinian refugees struggle for their right to return and all Palestinians confront land confiscation, criminalization, home demolitions, mass imprisonment and extrajudicial execution. Israeli impunity is trumpeted by imperialist politicians from the U.S. to Canada to Germany to France to Australia and beyond.

Ahmad Sa’adat and 5,000 Palestinian political prisoners are held captive in Israeli jails with the full support and complicity of these governments. We know that it is critical that we internationalize the struggle for their liberation: struggling to free Palestinian prisoners, to build the campaign to boycott Israel and the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, and to end the ongoing aid and support that enables and empowers Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people for over 70 years. 

Join us for the Week of Action! Organize an event, a protest, a table or a discussion in your city, campus, town or community. We know that the Zionist state wants to isolate these Palestinian prisoners and silence their voices –together, we can help to break that isolation.  Campaign to Free Ahmad Sa’adat Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network 25 December 2019

TAKE ACTION:

  1. Organize events, actions and protests at Israeli embassies and consulates around the world to urge freedom for Ahmad Sa’adat. Protest in public squares and other open community spaces. Note that these dates are also the anniversary of Israel’s bloody “Cast Lead” attack on Gaza in 2008-2009 –we urge you to include both in your events! Send us your events! Use this form or email samidoun@samidoun.net (Read about past years’ events here.)
  2. Distribute this call to action and take media actions, like posting photos with posters calling for freedom for Ahmad Sa’adat and other Palestinian prisoners. Download the posters below and send us your photos! Email us at samidoun@samidoun.net or send us a message on Facebook.
  3. Include Ahmad Sa’adat and the Palestinian prisoners in your Palestine solidarity, anti-racism, anti-imperialist and social justice events. Bring flyers and posters or share a statement from Sa’adat as part of your program. Let us know what you’re doing: Email us at samidoun@samidoun.net or send us a message on Facebook.

Important recent writings and interviews by Sa’adat (English):

POSTERS

Languages: English | Arabic | French | Dutch | Swedish | German | Turkish | Greek | Italian | Spanish | Danish

ENGLISH

Freedom for Ahmad Sa’adat

The General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Sa’adat was arrested by the Palestinian Authority on 15 January 2002 and jailed under US and British guard. After a violent attack in 2006, he was kidnapped by occupation forces; he is now serving a 30-year sentence in Israeli prison.

ARABIC

الحُرّية للقائد الوطني الأسير أحمد سعدات

أحمد سعدات : الأمين العام للجبهة الشعبية لتحرير فلسطين. إعتقلته الأجهزة الأمنية الفلسطينية في مدينة رام الله يوم 15 يناير 2002 وجرى وضعه تحت حراسة أمريكية ـ بريطانية في سجن أريحا . في 14 أذار / مارس 2006 هاجمت قوات الإحتلال الإسرائيلي سجن اريحا واختطفته مع عدد من رفاقه الأسرى. وفي 25 ديسيمبر 2008 أصدرت محكمة صهيونية غير شرعية حُكمًا بالسجن ضد لمدة 30 عامًا .

FRENCH – https://palestinevaincra.com/2019/12/appel-a-laction-du-15-au-29-janvier-2020-liberte-pour-ahmad-saadat-et-pour-tous-les-prisonniers-palestiniens/

Liberté pour Ahmad Sa’adat

Sa’adat, secrétaire général du Front Populaire de Libération de la Palestine, a été arrêté par l’Autorité Palestinienne le 15 janvier 2002 et emprisonné sous surveillance américaine et britannique. Après une violente attaque en 2006, il a été kidnappé par les forces d’occupation. Il purge actuellement une peine de 30 ans dans une prison israélienne.  

DUTCH: http://samidoun.nl/2019/12/25/kom-in-actie-bevrijd-ahmad-saadat-en-alle-palestijnse-gevangenen-15-29-januari-2020/

Vrijheid voor Ahmad Sa’adat

De Generaal-Secretaris van het Volksfront voor de Bevrijding van Palestina (PFLP), Sa’adat werd door de Palestijnse Autoriteit gearresteerd op 15 januari 2002. Vervolgens werd hij bewaakt door Britse en Amerikaanse troepen. Maar na een Israëlische aanval in 2006 werd Sa’dat gekidnapt; hij zit nu een 30-jarige celstraf uit.  

SWEDISH 

Frihet åt Ahmad Sa’adat

Den 15:e januari 2002 arresterade Palestinska myndigheten Ahmad Sa’adat, generalsekreterare för Folkfronten för Palestinas befrielse. Sa’adat sattes därefter i fångenskap under USA:s och Storbritanniens regi. Under ett våldsamt angrepp 2006 kidnappades han av Israels ockupationsstyrkor och nu avtjänar han ett 30-årigt straff på israeliskt fängelse.

Aktionsupprop: Frihet åt Ahmad Sa’adat och alla palestinska fångar! 15-29 januari 2020

Vi uppmanar alla palestinavänner och alla som försvarar det palestinska folkets frihet att tillsammans med oss ansluta sig till aktionsveckorna mellan den 15:e och den 29:e januari för frihet åt Ahmad Sa’adat och alla palestinska fångar som hålls i israeliska fängelser.

Ahmad Sa’adat är den fängslade generalsekreteraren för Folkfronten för Palestinas befrielse (PFLP) och är en palestinsk nationell befrielseledare och en symbol för den internationella vänstern och för internationella revolutionära rörelser. Han dömdes till 30 år i israeliskt fängelse den 25:e december 2008, anklagad för att leda en förbjuden organisation och för ”uppvigling”. PFLP, likt alla palestinska politiska partier och motståndsorganisationer, har stämplats som en ”förbjuden organisation” av de israeliska ockupationsmyndigheterna.

För Sa’adats och hans kamrater markerar detta år 18 år sedan Palestinska myndighetens fängslade dem som del av dess ”säkerhetssamordning” med den israeliska ockupationsmakten, ett förehavande som fortsätter än idag – till nackdel för palestinska studenter och motståndsorganisatörer som fängslas i Palestinska myndighetens fängelsen i ”svängdörr” med den israeliska ockupationen. Vi manar till internationella aktioner för frihet åt Sa’adat, hans kamrater och alla palestinska fångar, eftersom deras fångenskap är en internationell fråga.

Medan Sa’adat och hans kamrater hölls i Palestinska myndighetens fängelse i Jericho bevakades de av US-amerikanska och brittiska vakter, vilket tydligt visar att hans fängsling var långt ifrån något utövande av palestinsk suveränitet. Faktum är att vissa av de brittiska vakterna hade tidigare vaktat irländska republikanska fångar i fängelser i det ockuperade Nordirland.

Den 13:e mars 2006 – efter valet till Palestinska lagstiftande rådet, i vilket Sa’adat själv blev invald och anhängare till ”säkerhetssamordningen” led avsevärda förluster, medan det segrande ”Förändrings- och reformblocket” lovade att frige alla politiska fångar som hölls av Palestinska myndigheten – utförde angrisraeliska ockupationsstyrkor Jericho-fängelset ett våldsamt angrepp.

De US-amerikanska och brittiska vakterna lämnade Jericho i förväg som del av en uppgörelse med ockupationsstyrkorna – men ockupationsstyrkorna mördade två palestinska vakter. Ahmad Sa’adat är en palestinsk, arabisk och internationell symbol för motstånd mot kapitalism, rasism, apartheid och kolonialism. Han angrips för sin politiska roll och klarsynthet och han fortsätter vara en ledare i den palestinska fångrörelsen och den nationella befrielserörelsen bakom galler, oförmögen att bli tystad trots förtrycket han och hans 5000 palestinska politiska medfångar utsätts för.

Han manar alla världen över som stödjer rättvisa för Palestina att bojkotta Israel. Hans fall belyser den US-amerikanska och brittiska imperialismens roll i det palestinska folkets underkuvande och stölden av palestinsk mark såväl som i den Palestinska myndighetens underordning i ”säkerhetssamordningen” med samma israeliska ockupation som stjäl palestiniers mark, resurser och liv på daglig basis.

Vi uppmärksammar också att den palestinska befrielserörelsens fångar fortsätter att hållas även i internationella fängelser, i synnerhet Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, fängslad i Frankrike sedan 35 år tillbaka trots att han haft rätt till frigivning sedan 1999, och vi ansluter oss till uppropet för deras befrielse.

Angreppet på det palestinska folket fortsätter och intensifieras. Palestinier i Gaza kämpar för att bryta belägringen, palestinska flyktingar kämpar för sin rätt till återvändo och alla palestinier konfronterar landkonfiskering, kriminalisering, demolering av hem, massfängsling och utomrättsliga avrättningar. Israels straffrihet basuneras ut av imperialistiska politiker från USA till Kanada, Tyskland, Frankrike, Australien och vidare. 

Ahmad Sa’adat och 5000 palestinska politiska fångar hålls fångna i israeliska fängelser med dessa regeringars fulla stöd och medbrottslighet. Vi vet att det är avgörande att vi internationaliserar kampen för befrielse: kampen för att alla palestinska fångar ska friges, att bygga kampanjen för att bojkotta Israel och hela bojkott-, avinvesterings- och sanktionsrörelsen, och för att få ett slut på alla former av stöd som möjliggjort och understött Israels brott mot det palestinska folket i över 70 år.

Anslut dig med oss till aktionsveckorna! Organisera arrangemang, protester, informationsbord eller samtal i din stad, på din skola eller i ditt community. Vi vet att den sionistiska staten vill isolera dessa palestinska fångar och tysta deras röster – tillsammans kan vi bryta deras isolering.  

GERMAN

Freiheit für Ahmad Sa’adat

Der Generalsekretär der Volksfront für die Befreiung Palästinas, Sa’adat, wurde am 15. Januar 2002 von der Palästinensischen Autonomiebehörde verhaftet. Das Gefängnis, in dem Sa’adat inhaftiert war, wurde von US-amerikanischen und britischen Soldaten bewacht. Nach einem gewaltsamen Angriff im Jahr 2006 wurde er von Besatzungstruppen entführt. Er verbüßt jetzt eine 30-jährige Haftstrafe in einem israelischen Gefängnis.  

TURKISH

Ahmad Sa’adat’a özgürlük!

Filistin Halk Kurtuluş Cephesi genel sekreteri Sa’adat 15 ocak 2002 tarihinde Filistin otoriteleri tarafından göz altına alındı ve ABD ve Ingiliz denetiminde tutuklandı. 2006 yılındaki şiddetli bir saldırı sonrasında işgal gücleri tarafından kaçırıldı; şu an onaylanan 30 yıllık hapis cezasından dolayı Israil hapishanesinde yatıyor.

GREEK

Λευτεριά στον Άχμαντ Σααντάτ!

Ο Γενικός γραμματέας του Λαϊκού Μετώπου για την απελευθέρωση της Παλαιστίνης, Άχμαντ Σααντάτ συνελήφθη από την Παλαιστινιακή Αρχή στις 15 Ιανουαρίου 2002 και φυλακίστηκε υπό την προστασία της Αμερικής και της Βρετανίας. Μετά από μια βίαιη επίθεση το 2006 απήχθη από τις δυνάμεις Κατοχής και εκτίει ποινή φυλάκισης για 30 χρόνια.

ITALIAN

Libertà per Ahmad Sa’adat

Sa’adat, segretario generale del Fronte Popolare di Liberazione della Palestina, è stato arrestato dall’autorità Palestinese il 15 gennaio 2002 e imprigionato e sorvegliato dalle autorità americane e britanniche. Dopo un violento attacco nel 2006, è stato rapito dalle forze d’occupazione. Sconta attualmente una pena di 30 anni in una prigione Israeliana.

SPANISH

Libertad para Ahmad Sa’adat

Sa’adat, secretario general del Frente Popular de Liberación de Palestina, arrestado por la autoridad palestina el 15 de enero de 2002 y encarcelado bajo vigilancia americana y británica. Después de un ataque violento en 2006, fue secuestrado por las fuerzas de ocupación. Cumple actualmente una pena de 30 años en una prisión israelí.

DANISH

Frihed for Ahmad Sa’adat 

Generalsekretæren for PFLP (Folkefronten til Palæstinas Befrielse), Ahmad Sa’adat, blev arresteret af det palæstinensiske selvstyre (PA) den 15. Januar 2002 og fængslet under US-amerikansk og britisk overvågning. Under et voldsomt angreb i 2006 blev han kidnappet af besættelsesstyrker og har siden været indespærret i israelske fængsler, idømt 30 års fængsel.

MATERIALS AND RESOURCES

English-language poster to Free Ahmad Sa’adat Download PDF
Case of Ahmad Sa’adat – Free Palestinian Prisoners Leaflet (PDF, English)
Resource Guide on the Ahmad Sa’adat Case Download 32-page PDF
Protest Placard for International Week of Action – Boycott HP, Free Ahmad Sa’adat. Download as PDF
Protest Placard for International Week of Action – Free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian Prisoners. Download as PDF

24 January, La Roche-sur-Yon: Screening of “Mafak” and Discussion with Salah Hamouri

Friday, 24 January
8:30 pm
Cinema Le Concorde
8 rue Gouvion
85000 La Roche-sur-Yon, France
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1505989399576913/

Screening of the film “Mafak” and discussion with Salah Hamouri, Palestinian lawyer and former political prisoner, on the situation of Palestinian prisoners detained by the Israeli occupation.

Projection du film “Mafak” et rencontre avec Salah Hamouri avocat et ancien prisonnier politique palestinien.

Le vendredi 24 janvier 2019 au cinéma Concorde à la Roche sur Yon à 20h30, projection du film “Mafak” (le tournevis) avec la présence de Salah Hamouri. L’avocat franco-palestinien, ancien prisonnier politique palestinien, témoignera des conditions de détention en Israël.

Victory for Ahmad Zahran! Hunger strike ends after 114 days of struggle

Poster of Ahmad Zahran at a support protest. Photo: Quds News

On Monday, 13 January, Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Zahran announced a victory in his hunger strike, as he was just about to enter his 114th day on strike against his Israeli administrative detention, imprisonment without charge or trial. Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network expresses its warmest congratulations to Ahmad Zahran at this moment of victory. His steadfastness and commitment to struggle stand as an inspiration to all those around the world who support the Palestinian people and their just cause of return and liberation.

On Monday evening, Zahran, 42, from the village of Deir Abu Mishaal near Ramallah, called his family – after family visits and calls had been denied him throughout his nearly four months of hunger strike – from the Kaplan hospital where he has been held due to the severe deterioration of his health. He informed them that he had reached an agreement with the Israeli occupation prison administration that his administrative detention would not be renewed and would come to an end on 25 February 2020.

Ahmad Zahran’s wife, Karima, at a demonstration urging his freedom, Ramallah. Photo: Wattan News

This is the second hunger strike that Zahran has carried out during his detention without charge or trial by the Israeli occupation. He has been jailed under an administrative detention order since March 2019. Previously, he conducted a hunger strike for 39 days that ended with a pledge to release him – instead, however, his administrative detention was renewed. In the past, he has spent almost 15 years in Israeli prisons over multiple arrests. He is married and the father of four children, ranging in age from seven to 15.

During his imprisonment, multiple fellow Palestinian prisoners struggled alongside him to achieve this victory, including Jamil Ankoush, who carried out a 16-day hunger strike in solidarity with Zahran. Former prisoner Sumoud Karajeh carried out a 5-day hunger strike outside prison to support his demands. Dozens of prisoners of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine carried out a rotating series of hunger strikes and protests in multiple prisons, facing isolation and repression to demand Zahran’s freedom. PFLP prison branch leader Wael Jaghoub was isolated and banned from family visits following the announcement of activities inside the prisons in support of Zahran’s strike.

Demonstration in Gaza urges freedom for Ahmad Zahran, 13 January 2020. Photo: Hadf News

Earlier in the day, Palestinians in Gaza organized a protest in front of the Grand Mosque in Khan Younis in support of Zahran and his fellow Palestinian prisoners. Ali al-Shanna of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine emphasized the need for action to support the Palestinian prisoners, noting that “the program of struggle must rise to the level of the sacrifices made by the prisoners.”

Zahran is one of approximately 450 Palestinians held in administrative detention, of around 5,000 total Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli jails. These detention orders, introduced to Palestine by the British colonial mandate and then adopted by the Zionist project, are issued for up to six months at a time but are indefinitely renewable on the basis of “secret evidence.” Palestinians may be jailed for years at a time due to indefinitely renewable detention orders.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network sends its strongest congratulations and salutes to Ahmad Zahran, his comrades, his family and the Palestinian people on the occasion of his victory. On this occasion, we urge all who support the Palestinian people to join in the campaign to support Palestinian prisoners, struggling behind prison walls on the front lines for freedom. All freedom-loving people in the world look forward to celebrating the day that Ahmad Zahran steps out from behind the prison walls – and the day in which all prisoners – and all Palestinians – are free in a liberated land. The struggle and steadfastness of the Palestinian prisoners and the Palestinian people will lead not only to Zahran’s freedom, but to the liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea.

Palestinian child prisoners face further repression and transfer

Palestinian child seized in Jerusalem. Older photo, illustrative.

Israeli occupation officials announced that child prisoners would be transferred away from the Ofer prison and separated into cells without the adult prisoner representatives who support them before the prison administration on Saturday, 11 January. In response, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society noted that this is another attempt to confiscate one of the achievements of Palestinian prisoners that came through long periods of struggle, putting Palestinian children and youth at further risk.

The Prisoners Society noted that, rather than being held in groups, child prisoners would be held two to a cell. It said that this tactic was designed to isolate imprisoned children further from one another and from protective oversight of Palestinian elder prisoners. It also noted that prisoners would launch a series of protests in response, noting that this comes as part of a series of efforts to roll back achievements defending Palestinian prisoners’ rights that has been taking place systematically since 2018.

Specifically, the Israeli prison administration declared that around 60 child prisoners – out of a total of 200 children currently detained by the Israeli occupation. On Sunday evening, they announced that 34 Palestinian children would be transferred to Damon prison on Monday morning, 13 January, without the presence of their adult representatives.

Removing Palestinian child prisoners from the Ofer prison is particularly worrisome because Ofer is the main Israeli prison within the occupied West Bank of Palestine. Despite the Fourth Geneva Convention’s prohibition of the transfer of people under occupation to detention centers and prisons in the occupying power’s territory, the vast majority of Palestinian prisoners are subjected to exactly this type of transfer.

Because the Israeli occupation controls access to these prisons, Palestinians jailed in these prisons cannot receive family visits unless their family members receive a permit from the Israeli occupation authorities. These permits are frequently denied or revoked on spurious or nonexistent grounds of security, leaving jailed Palestinians without family visits. The impact on these denials on Palestinian children and their families is even more profound than its effect on adult prisoners.

This came as the Palestinian Prisoners’ Commission reported that Palestinian children in Ofer prison and their families had faced 54,000 NIS ($15,500 USD) in fines in December 2019 alone. In December 2019, 38 child prisoners entered Ofer prison, where there are currently 82 children imprisoned in two sections. Twenty children were sentenced in December to one week in prison to 23 months, while one child prisoner was ordered jailed without charge or trial under Israeli administrative detention for four months. (Administrative detention orders are indefinitely renewable.)

The Commission noted that these hefty fines are an arbitrary mechanism designed as a form of collective punishment for Palestinian families, in order to further restrict them by burdening them with unaffordable fines.

Every year, around 700 Palestinian children are brought before Israeli military courts after being arrested, detained and interrogated. The vast majority report some form of
torture and abuse, including kicking and beating in military jeeps as well as psychological torture during interrogation, including threats to arrest family members. Palestinian children are routinely denied access to parents or lawyers during interrogation and are held in solitary confinement. Several Palestinian children are jailed without charge or trial under indefinitely renewable Israeli administrative detention orders.

The No Way to Treat a Child campaign focuses on the effort in the United States to pass H.R. 2407, the “Promoting Human Rights for Palestinian Children Living Under Israeli Military Occupation Act,” a bill prohibiting U.S. taxpayer funding for the military detention of children by any country, including Israel.

Samidoun urges people in the U.S. to support the No Way to Treat a Child campaign and advocate for the release of all Palestinian children from Israeli prisons.  We demand the freedom of all Palestinian child prisoners and Palestinian prisoners sentenced as children in Israeli jails, as part of the liberation of all Palestinians imprisoned by the occupation – and the liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea.

Samah Jaradat’s family highlights Israeli abuse and torture under interrogation

Samah Jaradat. Photo: Samidoun Palestine

After Mays Abu Ghosh spoke about the torture and abuse to which she was subjected under a month of Israeli interrogation at the Moskobiyeh detention center, the family of her friend and fellow Palestinian student prisoner Samah Jaradat discussed her experience, as reported in Quds News.

Jaradat was subjected to 22 days of harsh interrogation at the Moskobiyeh detention center in occupied Jerusalem after she was seized by Israeli occupation forces who invaded her family’s home in Al-Bireh on 7 September 2019. Her father reported that armed occupation soldiers began banging on the door of the family home at 3:00 am. After the soldiers invaded the family home, two female soldiers entered Samah’s room alone and began to interrogate her.

Samah refused to open her phone for the occupation soldiers, so they brought her father to demand he open the phone for them. He reported that when he supported his daughter, an Israeli intelligence officer began questioning him about “how he raised his children,” a theme he had earlier pursued when Samah’s brother refused to greet the intelligence officer. The agent began shouting at her father, and he affirmed that he was proud of his children and how they were raised.

Samah’s father reported that the invading soldiers blindfolded her, cuffed her hands and detained her at a military camp before transferring her to the Moskobiyeh detention center. He said that “At the beginning of her interrogation at Moskobiyeh, the jailers strip-searched Samah and kept her in the room for five consecutive hours without anyone else present before beginning the interrogation.” He said that she was held in isolation and subjected to various forms of psychological torture, including sleep deprivation, during her interrogation. She was prohibited from seeing a lawyer for over 22 days.

Samah Jaradat. Photo: Quds News

He also said that “The occupation intelligence officers were interrogating Samah for lengthy, continuous hours, from 9 in the morning until 5 am the next day, in order to exhaust her and attempt to force her to confess.” He said that they first began to interrogate her, accusing her of participating in exploding a roadside bomb placed by the Palestinian resistance near an illegal Israeli settlement, but after discovering nothing, shifted instead to questioning her about her student activism at Bir Zeit University.

During the interrogation, Israeli interrogators threatened to keep her in prison for the rest of her life or to arrest her father or her brothers, her father reported. He also said that his daughter was taken to a room with speakers broadcasting screams and cries of pain, which Samah was told were the sounds being made by Palestinian prisoners during interrogation under torture.

Samah’s father reported that the Israeli intelligence officers directed that Samah be moved to the cells of collaborators in Ramle prison. This is a well-known technique in which arrested Palestinians are transferred to cells with others who claim to also be Palestinian prisoners. However, they are actually collaborators working for Israeli intelligence who are attempting a different form of interrogation to extract information from the person who has been detained.

Mays Abu Ghosh and Samah Jaradat. Photo: Facebook

He reported that one of the intelligence agents came to Samah and identified himself as a representative of the Palestinian prisoners, saying that he had requested that a place be opened for her with the rest of the prisoners. The undercover agent asked her to tell him all of the details about her political work and student activity, but she refused, because she recognized that it was a trap, her father reported.

“Samah has a strong personality and a deep concern for the Palestinian national cause. She loves her family very much. These are qualities that always make us proud, and we hope to see her free very soon,” he said.

In a letter she sent to her family, Samah wrote: “I send this letter to you from Damon prison, located on Mount Carmel. I am fine and everything is well. During the interrogation period, you were always with me at every moment. I was strengthened by your strength, so stay strong. I love you very much and hope you are well. When I saw you, and to Samar, Samer, Salwa, Sami and Salma, I love you so much.

Samah Jaradat was arrested only days after her graduation from her undergraduate studies at Bir Zeit University with a major in sociology. There are dozens of Palestinian students from Bir Zeit alone held in Israeli prisons, including several jailed under administrative detention without charge or trial.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network urges the broadest possible action and mobilization to support Samah Jaradat, Mays Abu Ghosh and Palestinian students and new graduates jailed by the Israeli occupation forces. We urge students around the world to hold events, vigils and informational actions to highlight the struggle of Palestinian students under occupation and all people of conscience to develop the campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel. Freedom for Samah Jaradat and all Palestinian students! 

Arabic source for this report: https://qudsn.net/post/171912/

Ahmad Zahran enters 112th day of hunger strike: Freedom now!

Ahmad Zahran’s wife, Karima, at a demonstration urging freedom for Ahmad Zahran, Ramallah. Photo: Wattan News

Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Zahran, jailed without charge or trial under Israeli administrative detention since March 2019, has been on hunger strike for 112 days. He is demanding freedom from administrative detention and launched his strike after his detention was renewed by an Israeli military order. He previously launched a 39-day hunger strike, which ended with a promise for his release that the Israeli military ignored, renewing his detention order without charges.

Zahran, 42 and the father of four from the village of Deir Abu Mishaal near Ramallah, has lost over 35 kilograms (77 pounds) of weight during his hunger strike. The Palestinian Prisoners’ Affairs Commission reports that he is unable to walk and suffers pain throughout his body. Nevertheless, he is repeatedly being transferred between Kaplan civilian hospital and the Ramleh prison clinic, despite the fact that these transfers are very draining for the already-frail hunger striker. His family characterized the ongoing transfers as another form of pressure imposed upon him in an attempt to break his strike. Palestinian prisoners brought to Israeli civilian hospitals are routinely shackled to their hospital beds, even if they are severely ill or unconscious.

Further, they noted that he had not received visits from either his lawyer or the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for one week because these transfers were taking place so frequently. On 7 January, the Ofer military court rejected his appeal against his administrative detention after weeks of delay and instead called on him to end his strike.

Within the prisons, fellow Palestinians are continuing to support Zahran. Jamil Ankoush, a fellow prisoner jailed nearly 20 years, has been engaged in a 16-day solidarity hunger strike demanding the implementation of Zahran’s demand for freedom. In the past, Zahran was jailed for almost 15 years through multiple arrests.

Palestinian scouts in Gaza support Ahmad Zahran. Photo: Hadf News

In Gaza City, progressive scouting groups had a youth day in support of Ahmad Zahran on 11 January, supporting his hunger strike against administrative detention. Palestinian children learned about Zahran’s case, his hunger strike and the history of the Palestinian prisoners’ movement, including hunger strikes. They also presented about Zahran and their work as youth groups in Gaza to an Italian delegation in solidarity with Palestine visiting the Strip.

Palestinian scouts in Gaza support Ahmad Zahran. Photo: Hadf News

Zahran declared in a statement released by his family, “I will not submit to the occupier. I will not remain silent in the face of crimes. I will raise my voice loudly. If it is muted, I will speak with my eyes and with my heart. If I confront it with my empty stomach and my slim bod, this is a cry of my conscience to the conscience of all of the people in the world who love freedom. I know that I, my four children, my wife, my close and extended family are not alone. By our side are all of the freedom-loving people of the world, and therefore, this struggle will continue until victory.”

Zahran’s wife, Karima, said that their four children, ranging in age from seven to 15 are eagerly awaiting news about his situation. She told Hadf News that they have had to live for many years without their father, due to repeated arrests by Israeli occupation forces, but they suffer from his absence. “Their celebrations are not happy, their days are not days, and even their joy is not true joy. They wake up and ask every day: is there anything new about our father? May we hear his voice on a call? Is there a decision to let us see him? Why are we banned from seeing him anyway?”

Prisoners’ associations have highlighted that there is a deliberate attempt on the part of Israeli occupation authorities, particularly the intelligence services, to block any agreement that would lead to his release. The Shin Bet demanded Zahran stop his hunger strike so that they could interrogate him, which he refused. Despite not interrogating him since his arrest, they also urged the Ofer military court to delay any action on the case so that he could be interrogated and potentially brought up on charges before the military courts.

Political and social associations in Ramallah and al-Bireh called for action to support the prisoners. On Tuesday, 14 January, they called for participation in a protest at 1:00 pm at Al-Manara Square in Ramallah in support of Ahmad Zahran and fellow Palestinian prisoners. The protest will also emphasize the need for mobilization to defend the homes of prisoners targeted for demolition by the Israeli occupation forces in Bir Zeit, al-Tira and elsewhere.

Zahran is one of approximately 450 Palestinians held in administrative detention, of around 5,000 total Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli jails. These detention orders, introduced to Palestine by the British colonial mandate and then adopted by the Zionist project, are issued for up to six months at a time but are indefinitely renewable on the basis of “secret evidence.” Palestinians may be jailed for years at a time due to indefinitely renewable detention orders.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network reiterates our full and unconditional solidarity with Ahmad Zahran and all Palestinian prisoners struggling for freedom. We urge all supporters of justice around the world to take a stand with Ahmad Zahran, whose life is on the line as he struggles to bring an end to administrative detention. International solidarity can be important to show Palestinian prisoners like Ahmad Zahran that they are not forgotten and to put pressure on the Israeli state – and the governments that support it – to support Zahran in achieving victory for justice and freedom.

Join the call to action: https://samidoun.net/2019/12/ahmad-zahran-heads-toward-100-days-of-hunger-strike-demand-his-freedom/

Call for action on 19 January: Freedom for Georges Abdallah and Ahmad Sa’adat!

Samidoun is distributing the following call to action as part of the 15-29 January Weeks of Action to Free Ahmad Sa’adat and all Palestinian prisoners. The ongoing imprisonment of Georges Ibrahim Abdallah – Arab communist struggler for Palestine – for over 35 years by the French state illustrates the involvement of colonial powers and imperialist forces in the imprisonment of Palestinian political prisoners, as does the case of Ahmad Sa’adat itself. 

The uprising of the Lebanese people against corruption and the economic policies which aim to make people pay for the crisis in the system is part of a vast movement of struggles which crosses the continents.

Among the means used by the elites to divide peoples: confessionalism and communitarianism. This practice of “divide and rule” is deeply rooted in Lebanon: instituted by the French, it has been taken up by all the dominant forces: semi-feudal, comprador and bourgeois.

And it is one of the great qualities of the uprising in these recent weeks to unite workers, intellectuals, agricultural workers, students, and members of the petty bourgeoisie regardless of their respective confessions and communities. The violence of the reaction of the communitarian parties, which launch their militiamen against the demonstrators with the complicity of the security forces, shows the importance of the stake.

Also important is the presence in the movement of the demand for the release of Georges Abdallah. Georges Abdallah is an international figure who embodies anti-imperialist and anti-Zionist resistance. It also embodies this revolutionary heritage which, turning its back on communitarianism, has put forward revolutionary internationalism as a central element of liberation between peoples.

The figure of Georges Abdallah also recalls the importance of the struggle for a free, secular and democratic Palestine. The capitulations of Oslo, the prospects of an “Arab-Muslim state” alongside a “Jewish state” can only satisfy those elites who collaborate with imperialism and who make their fortune on the backs of their people. Should we remind that Ahmad Sa’adat, secretary general of the PFLP, the main force opposing the Oslo Accords, was imprisoned by the Palestinian Authority before being imprisoned by Israel?

To support the struggle of the Lebanese people and to call for the release of Georges Abdallah,
To support the struggle of the Palestinian people and to call for the release of Ahmad Sa’adat,
The International Red Help, the “Lebanon’s Uprising”, Arab Red Help, and Samidoun are calling for an International Day of Action on Sunday January 19.

23 January, Edmonton: Revolution Selfie Public Screening

Thursday, 23 January
6:30 pm
Metro Cinema
8712 109 Street
Edmonton, Canada
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/461424144779048/

Revolution Selfie: The Red Battalion
A film by Steven De Castro
120min

Written, Directed and Produced by Steven De Castro
Key cast: Steven De Castro, Jose Maria Sison, Patrimunio Family, Luis Jalandoni, Julie De Lima, Bonifacio Ilagan

In this mock video game / documentary film, we accompany the filmmaker as he brings us face to face with the armed warriors of the New People’s Army (NPA) in the Philippines.

Filmmaker Steven de Castro sets out to discover what is going on in the Philippines that has led the CIA to declare war on to a revolutionary army growing in the countryside for almost 50 years – and why the CIA dubs the NPA a “foreign terrorist organization”.

Rather than simply presenting interviews and images in a traditional journalistic manner, this film weaves fantasy elements and web-based camera techniques into the documentary form to disrupt our matrix of widely held beliefs that underpin the discussion of terrorism, poverty, and the motivations of the warriors who fight in a revolutionary liberation war.

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