As part of the international week of solidarity for Georges Abdallah, Secours Rouge Geneva organizes an evening of letter-writing.
A Lebanese Communist and struggler for the Palestinian cause, Georges Abdallah has been imprisoned in France since 1984 despite being eligible for release since 1999. Georges Abdallah has never given up his political struggle, and it is important for us to show our support. We know that letters received in prison are always a source of strength and motivation for prisoners.
Join us at the Cafe Gavroche to write, discuss and show that Georges Abdallah is not alone in the fight!
Dans le cadre de la semaine internationale de soutien à Georges Abdallah le Secours Rouge Genève organise un apéro écriture de lettres.
Communiste libanais, militant de la cause palestinienne, emprisonné en France depuis 1984 et libérable depuis 1999. Georges Abdallah n’a jamais abandonné son combat politique. Il est important pour nous de lui montrer notre soutien. Nous savons que les lettres reçues en prison sont toujours une source de force et de motivation pour les prisonnier.es.
Rejoignez nous nombreuses et nombreux au Café Gavroche le mercredi 24 octobre dès 20h pour écrire, échanger et montrer que Georges Abdallah n’est pas seul dans son combat !
Join us on October the 13th in Nieuwland for an amazing learning experience, food and party!
We’ll be joined by Anakbayan’s general-secretary; Einstein Recedes. Anakbayan is a mass organization of the Filipino youth that seeks to unite the young generation from different sections of society to advance the cause of national democracy. Anakbayan works with workers, peasants, fisherfolk, the urban poor, students, out-of-school youth, women, professionals, migrants, Moros, Christians etc.
In this evening we’ll hear from Recedes’ experiences of activism and organizing in the Philippines; a semi-feudal state under the plague of US imperialism. From labor mobilization to the student struggle, and from the challenges to the state repression that comes with this.
There will also be contributions from activists working on such issues in the Netherlands. After this amazing learning experience, we’ll have an open floor discussion to reflect on what we must do to concretely to organize the masses across borders and build solidarity between the struggles of the different peoples of the world!
In September 2018, Israeli occupation forces arrested 378 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, according to a monthly report by Palestinian prisoners’ associations. The arrests included 52 children and 10 women. The following translation was produced by Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network.
Palestinian prisoners’ associations, including Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, the Prisoners’ Affairs Commission and Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, issued the report on Tuesday, 9 October. During September, Israeli occupation forces seized 104 Palestinians from Jerusalem, 56 from Ramallah and el-Bireh, 73 from al-Khalil, 30 from Nablus, 29 from Bethlehem, 19 from Jenin, 13 from Tulkarem, 23 from Qalqilya, five from Tubas, seven from Salfit, three from Jericho and 16 from the Gaza Strip.
These arrests bring the number of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails on 30 September 2018 to approximately 6,000. Of these, 52 were women, including a minor girl. The number of children held in Israeli jails reached around 200. In the context of the policy of administrative detention – imprisonment without charge or trial – the occupation authorities issued 38 administrative detention orders, including 24 new orders, bringing the total number of administrative detainees to approximately 430.
Abuse and execution of Palestinians during their detention
The prisoners’ institutions documented the testimonies of hundreds of Palestinian detainees who were beaten during their arrest. They were most frequently beaten with guns on different parts of the body, including detainees suffering from diseases and ill health.
Many of these testimonies were taken from detainees in the initial detention centers such as Etzion and Huwarra centers, where dozens of detainees confirmed during the visits shortly following their arrests that they had been severely beaten and abused. These testimonies were received from all prisoners, including children, elderly people, wounded and sick detainees. Since the beginning of 2018, human rights organizations documented the deaths of two detainees during the arrest process and due to shooting, beatings and torture, including Yassin Saradih from Jericho, killed during his arrest on 22 February 2018. He was severely beaten during his arrest, and the autopsy revealed that he was killed by a bullet in his lower abdomen fired from a point-blank distance. On 18 September 2018, Mohammed al-Rimawi of Ramallah was killed after being beaten by special forces of the occupation army during an arrest raid on his home.
It is the view of the institutions that the abuse, torture and killing of Palestinian detainees by the occupation army and its special forces during arrest and detention is clearly an excessive use of force that indicates that the occupation’s policy of the extrajudicial execution of Palestinians is continuing. This is being given full cover by the political, security and judicial institutions of the occupation state. Further, they note that the excessive use of force during the detention of Palestinians who do not pose a direct threat to the occupying force violates the rules of international human rights law, which prohibits the use of lethal force against civilians when they do not constitute a real and direct threat or danger. The use of lethal force in this manner is extrajudicial execution outside the scope of the law, especially as Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories are protected persons under international humanitarian law.
Detainees in detention centers face unsanitary conditions
According to monitoring and documentation, detainees held by the Israeli occupation in interrogation and initial detention centers complain continuously of the unhealthy and unsanitary conditions in which they are held by the occupation authorities, especially in the detention centers of Eisayoun, Jalameh and Huwwara.
A large number of prisoners are held in these centers without hygienic or healthy conditions. The rooms are narrow, dirty and have high humidity and little to no ventilation. The detainees receive dirty or contaminated water, and the rooms have a continuous stench and are infested with insects. It is a clear, systematic policy of abuse of detainees that creates a breeding ground for disease and contagion, and is mirrored by the lack of proper healthcare in prisons and detention centers.
Palestinian prisoner Khair Abu Rujaila, 41, from Atara village north of Ramallah, who was recently transferred to Ofer prison, said that during his interrogation at the Jalameh detention center several months ago, the administration intentionally provided the detainees with unhealthy and contaminated water. This resulted in pain in his side, specifically in the kidney area, but the prison administration did not pay attention to the detainees’ suffering and did not provide healthcare.
Al-Khatib, sentenced to 45 years in prison, began his strike on 5 August to see his early release after 21 years in detention. The occupaiton authorities deliberately transferred him from one prison to another as a means of pressure. He has since been transferred to the Israeli hospital, Barzilai, after the deterioration of his health.
Palestinian prisoner Adnan began his hunger strike on 2 September, rejecting his arbitrary arrest on 11 December 2017. During his strike, he has been transferred repeatedly, most recently to the Jalameh detention center, and the prison administration continues to prevent him from seeing his lawyers, saying that his health does not permit him to have a legal visit.
It should be noted that this is the third long-term hunger strike carried out by Adnan since 2012, noting that his previous strikes were against his administrative detention. The first was in 2012 and the second in 2015.
During the month of September, a number of prisoners carried out hunger strikes, including Jamal Alqam, Jawad Jawarish, Ismil Alayan and Salah Jawarish.
Women prisoners protest surveillance cameras, refuse recreation
Palestinian women prisoners at HaSharon prison have refused to go to the recreation yard in protest of the surveillance cameras installed by the prison administration since 5 September. As of the publication of this report, they continue to refuse to go to the yard. Originally, the cameras were covered several years ago after the protest of the prisoners at the time, but the prison administration reactivated them after the visit of the committee designed to withdraw the achievements and rights of the prisoners chaired by Israeli Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan. This followed the first repressive action of confiscating thousands of books from the prisoners. It should be noted that the prisoners have taken measures to protest against this violation of privacy, and the women prisoners are negotiating in order to achieve their demands. 34 women prisoners are held in HaSharon prison, while 20 more Palestinian women are jailed in Damon prison.
Mustapha Awad, 36, has been imprisoned by the Israeli occupation since 19 July – for nearly three months. A Belgian citizen of Palestinian descent, born in Ain el-Helweh camp in Lebanon, he is a well-known defender of Palestinian human rights and the founder of Raj’een dabkeh troupe in Brussels, which has performed across Belgium and throughout Europe. He was seized by Israeli occupation armed forces when he attempted to visit Palestine; taken inside Palestine at the Jordanian-Palestinian border, harshly and abusively interrogated and now facing political charges in Israeli court.
Awad appeared before the court on Wednesday, 10 October, one day after dozens of prominent Belgian intellectuals, artists and political figures signed an open letter calling for the Belgian government to take meaningful action on his case. His trial was postponed until 1 November. At the same time, many more supporters of Awad gathered outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Brussels to call on Foreign Minister Didier Reynders to pressure Israel to secure his release.
Raj’een troupe performed outside the ministry office as activists and organizers spoke to demand Awad’s freedom. They recalled their own work with Awad, a metalworker, youth activist and dancer, and highlighted Belgian and EU complicity with Israel’s ongoing human rights violations and war crimes. David Cronin, investigative journalist, spoke about Belgian and EU trade and joint research with Israel even as Palestinians face occupation, siege, extrajudicial killings and mass imprisonment.
In particular, protesters also condemned Belgian hypocrisy, an issue also raised by the open letter. Belgian-Nicaraguan student Amaya Coppens was arrested in Nicaragua and accused of involvement in armed anti-government protests and attempts to overthrow the government. However, unlike Awad, Coppens has received loud and vocal support from the Belgian government at the highest level – a fact undoubtedly connected to the fact that Nicaragua is currently subject to US and EU political intervention and destabilization, while the Israeli state is viewed as a prized ally regardless of its racism, colonialism and rampant attacks on Palestinian rights.
The Free Mustapha Committee is continuing its efforts to free Awad; it will organize several more protests outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with another demonstration planned for Wednesday, 24 October, at 4:00 pm. In addition, several well-known artists and musicians – including Code Rouge, Manza, Lidy Fa, iMP and Sensey Shogun – are donating their time to a benefit concert on Saturday, 20 October to help raise funds for Awad’s legal defense. The concert will be hosted at the Projection Room in Uccle, a multidisciplinary art space that is also donating its resources to support the campaign.
Thousands of Belgians have already signed the statement demanding Mustapha’s release, yet despite the defensive comments of Foreign Affairs minister Didier Reynders, the government’s support for Awad has been minimal. Even Reynders’ remarks give credibility to Israeli allegations, while the approach to the Coppens case has been decidedly different.
The week before, on 3 October, over 60 protesters also picketed outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling for action on the case. Alexis Deswaef, the honorary president of the League of Human Rights, made a strong speech calling on Belgium to end its hypocritical approach to its citizens’ rights.
On Monday, 10 September, Amaya Coppens, a young Belgian-Nicaraguan medical student, was arrested in the city of Leon, Nicaragua, by local police. She was involved in the April 19 Student Movement, which helped to lead the campaign against the government of Daniel Ortega. The charges used to justify her detention were quickly known: terrorism, carrying illegal weapons, arson, kidnapping. All of these were firmly rejected by Amaya’s relatives. Her father notes that the accusations of terrorism are part of a repressive campaign by the government and used abusively even against the most peaceful gatherings. Amaya, adds her father, is “very motivated by the fight against injustice and against the authoritarianism” of the government in place.[1]
Two days after her arrest, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Didier Reynders, intervened personally to make it known that “if he did not manage to have effective contact in the coming days, he would obviously also contact his Nicaraguan colleague (counterpart) duiring the UN General Assembly.”[2] This is indeed what he did, after the consular authorities had previously secured a meeting between the young woman and her father. This meeting was brief, certainly, but one can imagine the relief that it could provide to Amaya and the positive influence it could have on her morale as well as that of her relatives.
At this point, Amaya is still uncertain as to her fate, but Deputy Prime Minister Reynders said last Friday that “if the statements made to him were correct,” he had “the impresssion that ‘Amaya would be one of the first prisoners to be released.'” [3]
Mustapha Awad, meanwhile, was arrested by the Israeli armed forces on 19 July, more than two months ago, at the Jordanian-Palestinian border, after several hours of interrogation. The young Belgian artist and worker of Palestinian origin has also been accused of terrorism by the Israeli state, although he has never set foot in Palestine or in Israel before, and he is also known in Belgium for his civic commitment to human rights. The charges against him remained hidden for a long time, and several weeks passed before Mustapha learned of them. He also reported being abused. Mustapha could not see his lawyer until 20 days after his arrest, at the same time as the consul, who has only been able to visit him twice since his arrest. All contact with his family has been denied, with the Israeli authorities claiming reasons of “security.”
Our Foreign Minister has remained strangely silent on the case of Mustapha, and we are still awaiting an official statement on his part condemning the inhuman treatment to which he was subjected. In view of the murky conditions of his arrest and the unlawful interrogation techniques used against him, his immediate release should be sought.
In addition, it should be noted that Amaya has dual Belgian-Nicaraguan nationality, which theoretically complicates the efforts undertaken by our diplomatic corps for her release. Mustapha is exclusively a Belgian citizen. It follows that Israel does not detain in its prisons one of its nationals or even a Palestinian national, but a foreign national, in this case a Belgian. If Belgian diplomacy, and in particular its leader, do not react with the utmost firmness to the case of Mustapha, each of us would now be entitled to believe that in the case of arbitrary arrest in any country, we would find no support from the Belgian authorities. This would be a dangerous precedent that we cannot accept.
Amaya and Mustapha. Two Belgian nationals in similar situations but whose support by our diplomatic services diverges considerably at the highest level. Quite commendable, even exemplary in one case, and partial and imperfect or even nonexistent in the other. We have the right to demand respect for the equality of each and every one of our citizens, even outside our borders.
Belgium’s commitment to the rights of its nationals abroad cannot be dependent on geopolitical interests or diplomatic calculations related ot the nature of the country involved, be it Nicaragua or Israel. We therefore call on our Foreign Minister Didier Reynders to take a public stand in favor of the respect of the law and the release of Mustapha from the Israeli authorities, as he did for Amaya with the Nicaraguan authorities.
Signatories of the open letter:
Ludo Abicht, professor at the University of Antwerp
Marc Abramowicz, founder of the Aimer center at ULB
Mateo Alaluf, honorary professor at ULB
Karel Arnaut, professor of anthropology at KULeuven
Jos Beni, honorary teacher
France Blanmailland, lawyer
Johannes Blum, retired teacher
Francine Bolle, ULB Lecturer
Jean Bricmont, professor emeritus of UCL
Fabienne Brion, professor at the Faculty of Law and Criminology at UCLouvain
Mustapha Awad, a Belgian worker and artist, has been imprisoned in Israel since 19 July. He appeared in court on October 10, but the “trial” was postponed until November 1st 2018. It is NOW that Belgium must act to obtain the release of Mustapha, before this “trial”, based on “confessions” obtained under torture, takes place. That is why the Free Mustapha Committee is calling for a new protest in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As 64 Belgian personalities said in an article published on the websites of Le Vif and Knack: “Belgium’s commitment to the rights of its citizens abroad can not be dependent on geopolitical interests or diplomatic calculations related to the nature of the opposed country, that it happens in Nicaragua or Israel. We therefore ask our Foreign Minister Didier Reynders to take a public stand in favor of the respect of the law and the release of Mustapha from the Israeli authorities as he did for Amaya with the Nicaraguan authorities. ”
**
Mustapha Awad, ouvrier et artiste belge, est emprisonné en Israël depuis le 19 juillet. Il a comparu devant un tribunal le 10 octobre, mais le « procès » a été reporté au 1er novembre. C’est MAINTENANT que la Belgique doit agir pour obtenir la libération de Mustapha, avant que ce « procès », basé sur des « aveux » obtenus sous la torture, n’ait lieu. C’est pourquoi le Comité Free Mustapha appelle à un nouveau rassemblement devant le ministère des Affaires étrangères.
Comme le disaient 64 personnalités belges dans une Carte blanche publiée sur les sites du Vif et de Knack : « L’engagement de la Belgique pour les droits de ses ressortissants à l’étranger ne peut être tributaire des intérêts géopolitiques ni des calculs diplomatiques liés à la nature du pays en face, que ce soit le Nicaragua ou Israël. Nous demandons donc à notre ministre des Affaires étrangères Didier Reynders de se positionner publiquement en faveur du respect du droit et de la libération de Mustapha auprès des autorités israéliennes comme il l’a fait pour Amaya auprès des autorités nicaraguayennes. »
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Mustapha Awad, Belgische arbeider en artiest, wordt gevangen gehouden in Israël sedert 19 juli. Hij verscheen voor een rechtbank op 10 oktober, maar het « proces » is verplaatst op 1 november. Het is NU dat België moet tussenkomen om de vrijlating van Mustapha te bekomen, voor dat dit « proces », dat steunt op « bekentenissen » bekomen onder foltering, plaats heeft. Daarom roept het Comité Free Mustapha nogmaals op tot een nieuwe verzameling voor het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken.
Zoals 64 Belgische personaliteiten het stelden : « Het engagement van België om op te komen voor de rechten van haar burgers in het buitenland mag niet afhangen van geopolitieke belangen of diplomatieke berekeningen gelinkt aan het land in kwestie, in dit geval Nicaragua of Israël. We vragen aan onze minister van Buitenlandse Zaken Didier Reynders om zich publiekelijk uit te spreken voor de rechten en de vrijlating van Mustapha bij de Israëlische overheid, zoals hij gedaan heeft bij Amaya bij de Nicaraguaanse overheid. »
The IRSP will be holding a vigil at the International Wall in Belfast on Wednesday 24th of October, 7pm, calling for the freedom of Lebanese Communist George’s Abdallah from French internment.
Georges Abdallah is a Lebanese Communist fighter for Palestine, and one of the longest-held political prisoners in the world. Imprisoned in various French prisons for 32 years, Abdallah has dedicated his life to the freedom of the Palestinian and Lebanese people from occupation and oppression.
Sentenced to life imprisonment in France on 24 October 1987, Abdallah has been eligible for release under parole since 1999. Yet in a sharp departure from standard practice in the French judicial system, he has been refused parole and release to his home country of Lebanon, despite the request of the Lebanese government for his release.
Seán Carlin from the IRSP international department finishes “We are doing this in conjunction with our comrades around the world, in a week of events from the 17th to the 24th of October. Which will see activists descend on French embassies around the world and other government institutions, we call on Republican Socialists to join us in calling for his immediate release.”
The IRSP call for the immediate and unconditional release of our comrade George’s Abdallah we condemn the Zionist and imperialist pressure for his continued internment.
Against the Italian and European governments – racist and complicit with Zionism! Free the revolutionary prisoners:
Georges Abdallah – founder of the Lebanese Armed Revolutionary Fraction, jailed in French prison for 34 years
Ahmad Sa’adat – General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, imprisoned by the PA since 2002 and then the Zionist state until 2006
Raja Eghbarieh – leader of the Abna’a el-Balad movement in occupied Palestine ’48, imprisoned in Zionist jails since 11 September
Fronte Palestina & Collettivo Contro la Repressione per un Soccorso Rosso Internazionale
As Britain continues its support for the Israeli colonisation of Palestine, the masses in Gaza are marching for the right of return to their homes. The export and import of weapons between British imperialism and Zionist Israel is only one factor in this pernicious relationship.
Lebanese communist Georges Abdallah hasnow been locked up for 35 years by France for standing up for Palestine. PFLP leader and prisoner Ahmad Sa’adat has joined calls for action:
‘For us, inside Israeli prisons, Georges Abdallah is a fellow struggler and a fellow Palestinian prisoner. We call him “the General of the prisoners of the PFLP.” He is part of us – one with us in unity and common struggle. We feel his support and participation in our struggle across seas and through iron bars and prison walls. He returns meals with our hunger strikes, his heart beats for Palestine just as his politics centers its liberation, and he has spent decades imprisoned because of his commitment to the liberation of the Palestinian and Arab people.’
Join us on the streets of Manchester to support the international week of action.
Victory to the Palestinian people!
Free Georges Abdallah’s!
Free all Palestinian political prisoners!
Break Britain’s links with Zionism!
Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network received the following statement from Ahmad Sa’adat, the imprisoned General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, where he is held in Israeli prison. Sa’adat is encouraging all Palestinians and friends of Palestine to participate in the Week of Action to Free Georges Abdallah, taking place from 17-24 October. See the list of events and ways you can heed Sa’adat’s call and join the week of action below his statement:
Poster by Maram Saadi
On behalf of the prisoners of the Popular Front and the Palestinian prisoners’ movement, I extend our greetings and salutes to all those organizing for freedom for Georges Ibrahim Abdallah as he enters his 35th year inside French colonial jails. In particular, I urge the Palestinian and Arab masses and their liberation movements and all friends of Palestine and our struggle around the world to join in the Week of Action to Free Georges Ibrahim Abdallah, from October 17-24, organized by Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network and the international campaign to free Georges Abdallah.
We urge all to march in Lannemezan on 20 October in the national march organized by the tireless comrades who struggle, day in and day out, for the freedom of comrade Georges and our freedom in Palestine.
For us, inside Israeli prisons, Georges Abdallah is a fellow struggler and a fellow Palestinian prisoner. We call him “the General of the prisoners of the PFLP.” He is part of us – one with us in unity and common struggle. We feel his support and participation in our struggle across seas and through iron bars and prison walls. He returns meals with our hunger strikes, his heart beats for Palestine just as his politics centers its liberation, and he has spent decades imprisoned because of his commitment to the liberation of the Palestinian and Arab people.
Indeed, Georges Abdallah is an icon of resistance. With his clear analysis and involvement in all struggles for justice inside France and around the world, he refuses all attempts to isolate and silence him. His case also shows quite clearly just how strongly U.S. and French imperialism are tied to Zionism and the colonization of Palestine.
Just as the French state celebrates with the war criminal Netanyahu to inagurate a “France-Israel season” as his troops shoot down our people in Gaza as they march in the Great March of Return, we know that this is the same France that slaughtered 1.5 million Algerians in its colonial wars in the Arab world. And just as the people of Algeria defeated French colonialism after paying the highest price in blood and sacrifice for their freedom, we know that Georges Ibrahim Abdallah will win.
And as the United States – itself a colonial settler state built on the genocide of Indigenous peoples and the enslavement of Black people – attempts to liquidate the Palestinian cause, erase our fundamental right to return and label our resistance as “terrorist,” it has repeatedly interfered to keep Georges Abdallah behind bars. From Condoleeza Rice to Hillary Clinton, consecutive Secretaries of State have demanded that our beloved freedom fighter be kept behind bars.
Of course, this is no surprise. Imperialism and Zionism stand together to construct prisons, walls and war machines. From Greece to the Philippines to Turkey, political prisoners put their bodies on the line to fight back against capitalism and imperialism. In the Arab reactionary regimes that stand hand in hand with the United States, from Saudi Arabia to Morocco, we hear the calls of our fellow political prisoners, demanding justice and liberation.
Between October 17 and 24, raise your voice against this injustice. Take to the streets, organize and act to demand freedom for Georges Abdallah and all political prisoners. The Palestinian prisoners are with you – we shout for the freedom of our comrade Georges Abdallah from the depths of the Zionist dungeons. Together, we can win the freedom of this beloved comrade, a leader of the Palestinian, Arab and international struggle for socialism and liberation.
To stand with Georges Abdallah is to stand with the resistance, the Palestinian people and all those political prisoners struggling for freedom.
Ahmad Sa’adat
Ramon Prison
9 October 2018
TAKE ACTION:
1. Organize events, actions and protests at French embassies and consulates around the world. Where there is not a French consulate, protest at U.S. or Israeli embassies and consulates and in public squares. Send us your events! Use this form or email samidoun@samidoun.net
2. Join the broad national protest in Lannemezan on 20 October. Every year, hundreds arrive to demand George’s freedom, raising a call so loud the prisoners can hear us inside. Don’t miss this year’s action!
Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network participated in a series of events in Denmark in early October, organized by the Internationalt Forum and Boykot Israel. Charlotte Kates, Samidoun’s international coordinator, joined Palestinian leftist writer and organizer Khaled Barakat for several speaking events discussing the Palestinian situation today and how international solidarity can help to support the Palestinian liberation struggle.
On 4 October, Barakat and Kates presented at an event organized by Internationalt Forum Nordsjælland at the smelters’ union hall in Helsingør. There, Kates focused on the struggle of Palestinian political prisoners inside Israeli jails. After presenting key statistics about the number of prisoners, their conditions of confinement and the colonial system they face, she discussed the importance of international solidarity with Palestinian prisoners.
In particular, she noted that Palestinian prisoners represent a real Palestinian leadership – unlike the Palestinian Authority’s ongoing security coordination with Israel – that the occupation desperately seeks to isolate not only from the Palestinian people but from international movements for justice. She also noted several important cases of imprisoned Palestinians, including Ahmad Sa’adat – the jailed General Secretary of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, first jailed by the PA under British and U.S. guard – Khalida Jarrar and Khader Adnan.
Photo: Jean, via facebook
Barakat provided a thorough and wide-ranging overview of the Palestinian liberation movement, emphasizing that the struggle of the Palestinian people is an anti-colonial struggle that confronts an array of enemies and repressive forces that are joined together by common interests. He noted that Israel, the United States and Arab reactionary regimes come together to impose the ongoing colonial project in Palestine. He also emphasized the importance of the Palestinian popular classes in the liberation struggle and the role of the Palestinian Authority in serving only the interest of the wealthiest capitalists, while further marginalizing the majority of the Palestinian people.
He also focused on the importance of the right of return to the liberation project, especially as the U.S. is currently working to attempt to liquidate this fundamental right. Over half of the Palestinian population are refugees, Barakat noted, and their right to return has been denied them on the basis that their existence is a threat to the ongoing racist domination of Zionism. He encouraged Palestinians and solidarity activists to envision a future for Palestine “beyond Israel,” including the establishment of a democratic Palestine.
On Friday, 5 October, Barakat and Kates joined several Internationalt Forum organizers, including Irene Clausen, the author of the new book “PFLP and Palestine,” for a meeting with Christian Juhl, a member of the Danish Parliament representing the Red-Green Alliance. They discussed important issues facing Palestinians today, including the Great March of Return in Gaza and the need for international support to break the siege and support Palestinian refugees’ right to return. Kates discussed several cases of Palestinian political prisoners, including that of Mustapha Awad, a Belgian citizen jailed by the Israeli occupation, and Raja Eghbarieh, a Palestinian leader in occupied Palestine ’48 whose case further exposes the lie of “Israeli democracy.”
Photo: Irene Clausen
Barakat also was interviewed by Arbejderen, the daily newspaper of the Communist Party of Denmark, about a range of issues facing the Palestinian people today. “Zionist Israel, the imperialists in the United States and other Western countries, as well as the reactionary Arab regimes, spoken by Saudi Arabian king Bin Salman, have collapsed to break the Palestinian cause. They want the question completely off the table, so the focus is shifting to the fight against Iran,” Barakat said. He also addressed the devastating effects of the Oslo agreement as well as the need for more action to boycott Israel. “Israel is a racist and colonialist state that is doomed to dissolve. I believe that at one point Israel is going to become a burden for imperialism, as we have seen elsewhere in world history, such as in South Africa,” he said.
Photo: Jean, via facebook
That evening, they presented at the Internationalt Forum’s Solidarity Boutique in Copenhagen. Kates again reviewed the situation of Palestinian political prisoners, noting the inadequacy of statistics in conveying how deeply imprisonment affects the Palestinian society and its political movement. She noted that the Palestinian prisoners represent the Palestinian resistance in all of its forms, also making it politically critical for the solidarity movement to emphasize its support for their freedom struggle. In addition, she also talked about how the Israeli occupation denies Palestinians’ right to education – through the imprisonment of children who lose years in school as well as the attacks on university students and professors. She urged the boycott of Israeli academic institutions, including study abroad programs, in protest of the violation of Palestinians’ right to education.
Photo: Jean, via facebook
Barakat provided a thorough analysis of the Palestinian political situation, highlighting how the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian capitalist class have hijacked the liberation movement and emphasizing the need to focus on the struggle rooted in the refugee camps and among the popular classes. He noted that the Great Marches of Return in Gaza since 30 March have once again drawn the eyes of the world to Gaza, as Palestinians show immense creativity in their resistance and have resisted the silencing and liquidation of their cause.
He also discussed the situation in the Arab world and how it is affecting Palestinians today, especially as Arab reactionary regimes – particularly Saudi Arabia – are key partners of Zionism and imperialism in the attack on the Palestinian people. Without Egypt’s military government that imprisons thousands on political charges, the siege on Gaza would not hold, he noted. In addition, he discussed the imperialist attacks on Syria and Libya, noting that the role of NATO, the EU and the United States was clearly not to support Arab peoples’ rights to self determination and liberation but to further divide, impoverish and subjugate people.
Photo: Boykot Israel-DK
On Saturday, 6 October, they joined Boykot Israel – DK, one of the oldest boycott organizations in Europe, having been founded in 2002, for a flyering and public awareness action near Norreport station in the center of Copenhagen. Participants carried a large orange banner reading “Boykot Israel” and distributed over 1,000 flyers to passers-by in the area. In addition, activists marked Israeli dates in nearby supermarkets as products of apartheid. Boykot Israel does these public information events on the first Saturday of every month in Copenhagen.
