11 November, NYC: G4S out of Charlotte, Standing Rock and Palestine!

8 November 2016

Friday, 11 November
4:00 pm
G4S offices, NYC
19 W. 44th Street
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1783499945253591/

British-Danish conglomerate G4S, the world’s largest security company and its second-biggest private employer, plays key roles in racist state repression from Palestine, where it services and equips the prisons and detention centers, occupation and security forces, and checkpoints and settlements used to cage Palestinians and crush their resistance; to Standing Rock, where its forces have deployed to guard the route of the proposed Dakota Access Pipeline and protesters have faced brutality including attack dogs, pepper spray, tear gas and rubber bullets; to Charlotte, North Carolina, where armed Charlotte Area Transit System officers, a private, G4S-run “company police” force, operate alongside the racist, lethal cops who killed Keith Scott.

In solidarity with the Charlotte Uprising, the Palestinian political prisoners on hunger strike against administrative detention, medical neglect, the denial of family visits and other abuses in Israeli prisons, and the Native land and water defenders of Standing Rock, join us to demand that G4S end its complicity in racist state violence.

At 5:30 pm, we will march to Times Square.

Severely injured Palestinian mother Israa Jaabis sentenced to 11 years in Israeli prison

8 November 2016

Palestinian prisoner Israa Jaabis, 32, was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Monday, 7 November by an Israeli court in Jerusalem. Jaabis is a resident of Jabal Mukabber in occupied east Jerusalem; she was severely injured on 10 October 2015 after a fire broke out in her car. She was 500 meters away from an Israeli occupation military checkpoint when a gas canister for use in cooking burst into flames in the back seat of her car.

Jaabis’ airbag went off in the front seat of the car. Israeli occupation forces accused her of attempting to detonate a car bomb; an Israeli police officer was injured when the car fire broke out. However, Jaabis was severely burned, especially on her face and hands. Eight of her fingers were amputated when she was hospitalized. She and her family repeatedly stated that she was carrying the gas canister as part of her move; in order to preserve her Jerusalem residency, she had recently rented a new apartment and had been moving furniture in her car for days. Palestinian Jerusalemites, especially those with family members in the West Bank, are systematically targeted for the revocation of their Jerusalem IDs by the Israeli occupation.

Jaabis was moved to HaSharon prison before the completion of her treatment. Due to her severe injuries and lack of support inside the prison, she must rely on her fellow women prisoners to assist her with basic tasks. She is not receiving supplemental treatment despite her massive burns and severe injuries. In order to convict Jaabis of “attempted murder” for a fire contained to the inside of her own car, Israeli prosecutors referenced her Facebook and social media posts expressing support for the Palestinian resistance and liberation for Palestine. In addition to the 11 year prison sentence, Jaabis was ordered to pay a fine of 20,000 NIS (approximately $5,000 USD).

Jaabis’ sentence comes alongside multiple other lengthy sentences meted out by Israeli courts to severely injured Palestinians, particularly children. Ahmad Manasrah, 14, was sentenced yesterday to 12 years imprisonment, while Munther Abu Mayala, 15, and Mohamed Taha, 16, were sentenced to 11 years each.. These excessive prison sentences come alongside the extrajudicial execution of 238 Palestinians by occupation forces, including 57 children.

She is married and the mother of an eight-year-old daughter. Jaabis is among 64 Palestinian women held in Israeli prisons, including 13 minor girls.

On Monday, the Ofer military court extended the detention of Arwa Tamimi Sultan; she was detained ten days after her husband, Jad Sultan, was arrested. Jad has been held under interrogation for 17 days. Palestinians denounced Arwa’s continuing imprisonment as a mechanism to coerce Jad into false confessions.

Among the Palestinian women imprisoned by the Israeli occupation include Haifa Abu Sbeih, 37, from al-Khalil. Held in Damon prison, she is married and a mother of six; her children range in age from two years of age to 18. Imprisoned since 14 December 2015 when occupation forces stormed their family home, she was denied family visits for several months. Abu Sbeih runs a private elementary school and is a board member of the Democracy Center in Ramallah.

Another mother who, like Jaabis, is a seriously injured Palestinian prisoner, also a mother denied visits with her two year old daughter Mayssam, is Helwa Hamamreh of Husan, near Bethlehem. Hamamreh was shot multiple times while allegedly carrying out a stabbing operation against a security guard at the Israeli settlement of Beitar Illit. Parts of her liver, pancreas, spleen and intestines were removed and she was interrogated while in intensive care. Over 12 military court hearings have been held in Hamamreh’s case, most of them continued; in Abu Sbeih’s case, ten hearings have been held and the case continues to move forward.

Two Palestinian hunger strikers in urgent health conditions as two more conclude strike with victorious demands

8 November 2016

Two Palestinian prisoners, Ahmad Abu Fara and Anas Shadid, are facing serious health circumstances and forced treatment as they continue their hunger strike for the 45th day, demanding an end to their administrative detention without charge or trial. The two prisoners are suffering a very serious and critical health condition at this point after over a month and a half without food as they are shackled to their hospital beds in Assaf Harofeh hospital.

Abu Fara, 29, and Shadid, 19, are under heavy guard and surveilled at all times by cameras. They are shackled to their hospital beds by their left hand and right foot. The prison guards surrounding them continue to eat ostentatiously in front of them. Both can walk and speak only with great difficulty and suffer from chronic headaches, dizziness, weakness, blurred vision and sharp pains throughout the body. Each has lost over 20 kilograms since they began their strike on 25 September. Both are from villages near al-Khalil, Abu Fara from Surif and Shadid from Dura.

Mohja al-Quds Foundation also reported that Abu Fara was subject to forced treatment, including medical tests and intravenous nutrition while he was unconscious after fainting for several hours. When he awoke, he immediately demanded the removal of the intravenous tube.

They continue their strike as three more Palestinian prisoners concluded their hunger strikes. Samer Issawi and Munther Snobar concluded their strike on Sunday, 6 November in an agreement in which the Israeli prison administration conceded that women prisoners would be returned to HaSharon prison from Damon prison following the completion of construction, reported the Palestinian Prisoners’ Affairs Commission. An end to the unacceptable conditions for women in Damon prison was the key demand of Issawi’s and Snobar’s strike. The conditions for women imprisoned in Damon are notoriously difficult; even beyond the lack of bathroom access or sufficient facilities, women in Damon prison must take arduous three-day journeys via the “bosta” in order to travel to military court and back. Issawi’s sister, Shireen, is imprisoned in Damon prison with 15 other Palestinian women. The women in Damon prison detailed their experiences in a recent report with the Women’s Organization for Political Prisoners.

Issawi’s and Snobar’s additional demands, including proper medical treatment, access to Doctors without Borders and ending the denial of family visit, remain subject to consideration and discussion, reported the Palestinian Prisoners’ Affairs Commission.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network salutes Issawi and Snobar on their achievements in their hunger strike and emphasizes the urgency of the implementation of this agreement to end the suffering of the women imprisoned in Damon. We urge escalated international solidarity at this critical moment for Abu Fara, Shadid and all Palestinian prisoners struggling for freedom.

Palestinian child Ahmad Manasrah, 14, sentenced to 12 years in Israeli prison

7 November 2016

Palestinian child prisoner Ahmad Manasrah, 14, was sentenced in Israeli courts on Monday, 7 November to 12 years in Israeli prison as well as fines of 180,000 NIS ($47,200 USD).

Palestinian lawyer Jamil Saadeh noted upon Ahmad’s conviction in May that “the occupation deliberately kept the child Ahmad Manasrah imprisoned inside a reform center until he reached the legal age for full sentencing under Israeli law, which is the age of 14 years…The court did not take into account what he suffered from the moment of his detention, being wounded, assaulted and cursed, treated inside the hospital as a threat, and screamed at during interrogation by the officers, all of which is documented on video and condemns the occupation.”

Ahmad, 14, was accused of participating in a stabbing operation against Israeli settlers in the east Jerusalem settlement of Pisgat Ze’ev last year, when he was 13 years old. Ahmad was with his 15-year-old cousin, Hassan Manasrah, at the time, on 12 October 2015. Hassan was shot by settlers and killed on the street, while Ahmad was run over by settlers and seriously injured. Video of settlers screaming and cursing at the bleeding Ahmad and yelling that he should die was widely circulated via social media. Two settlers were injured in the incident, while Ahmad was critically injured and Hassan’s life was taken. Hassan is one of 57 Palestinian children who have been killed by Israeli forces since 5 October 2015.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79sw9GOHNws

Manasrah was convicted in Israeli courts in May and sentenced today to 12 years imprisonment. In the Israeli courts in “security” cases, Palestinian youth do not receive reduced sentencing despite their juvenile ages. Instead, for every conviction on any charge that carries a maximum sentence of greater than six months, children 14 and up are sentenced identically to adults over 18. Such charges include throwing stones, membership in a prohibited organization or incitement for social media postings. Palestinian children are also held without charge or trial under administrative detention.

The pursuit of extremely lengthy sentences against Palestinian children is a growing trend in Israeli military and other courts, as illustrated by the cases of Muawiya Alqam, 14, sentenced to six and one-half years and the pending case of Nurhan Awad, 17, against whom a 15-year sentence is sought. Nurhan’s case is strikingly similar to Ahmad’s; she was with her cousin, Hadeel, who was shot and killed by Israeli settlers while Nurhan was severely injured.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwrGe9eP88k

Ahmad’s interrogation was also videotaped, where he was pressured and shouted at by multiple interrogators as he stated he did not remember the incident. Ahmad is one of nearly 400 Palestinian children held in Israeli prisons. Palestinian children are routinely subject to torture and abuse under interrogation, solitary confinement during interrogation, beating and kicking by occupation military personnel, threats of sexual assault and other forms of abuse, reports Defence for Children International Palestine.They are also routinely interrogated harshly without access to a parent or a lawyer.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network condemns the sentencing of Ahmad Manasrah and demands the immediate release of Ahmad and all imprisoned Palestinian children. We further call for international action to compel the Israeli state to respect the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and end international military aid and assistance that funds the imprisonment and torture of Palestinian children. The imprisonment, oppression, and killing of Palestinian children like Ahmad and Hassan Manasrah by the Israeli occupation is part and parcel of the Israeli colonial project in Palestine, and the only true freedom for Palestinian children will be achieved through the freedom of the Palestinian people and Palestinian land.

Sayeh receives pacemaker surgery after legal struggle; Palestinian prisoners continue to face medical neglect

5 November 2016

Palestinian prisoner Bassam Sayeh received surgery for a cardiac pacemaker on Thursday, 3 November and has been returned to the Ramle prison clinic, reported the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society. The surgery came after extended legal work and campaigning by lawyer Arwa Hleihel, repeatedly seeking attention to Sayeh’s dire medical condition.

Sayeh, 43, is one of the most gravely ill Palestinian prisoners, suffering both from cancer and heart disease. From Nablus, he has been imprisoned since 8 October 2015, accused of participating in supporting a resistance operation against Israeli settlers. Sayeh was seized by occupation forces as he went to the Salem military court near Jenin for the hearing of his then-imprisoned wife Mona. Sayeh has leukemia that has spread to his bone marrow in addition to serious heart disease.

Sayeh’s case is one of the most severe cases among the 30 Palestinian prisoners suffering from cancer, among over 100 with serious and chronic diseases or disorders. Many Palestinian prisoners face a constant experience of medical neglect and lack of appropriate treatment; in Sayeh’s case, his lawyer has been struggling for months for the necessary surgery, and he has faced multiple occasions of interference with chemotherapy and denial of access to independent doctors.

Mohammed Rimawi shared his experience on 2 November with the Handala Center for Prisoners and Former Prisonsrs. Rimawi, who suffers from Familial Mediterranean Fever, was left without diagnosis or treatment for a long period of time. When his shortness of breath became extreme, following protest and the demands of his fellow prisoners, he was finally permitted to see a doctor in Ramon prison. One month later, he was taken to the Ramle prison clinic for testing. While he was severely ill, he was taken from Ramon prison to the Ramle prison clinic via the notorious “bosta,” on a journey which took days via multiple prisons, processing points and stops. In the Ramle prison clinic, he was misdiagnosed on two occasions over multiple months, first with diagnosis and then with lung cancer. A month after the lung cancer diagnosis, he was finally sent to Assaf Harofeh hospital. There, he was informed of his correct diagnosis, and while the hospital physicians advised that he needed to remain in the hospital, the IPS instead returned him to Ramle prison clinic. He did finally begin to receive the appropriate medication for his condition after a lengthy and unnecessary period of suffering.

The Palestinian Prisoners Affairs Commission reported on 2 November regarding several Palestinian prisoners struggling with illness and not receiving necessary treatment.

Eyad Radwan, 36, is held in Ramon prison, where he is suffering from constant gastrointestinal pain and severe symptoms, head and chest pain. He was held for five years in the Ramle prison clinic with sick prisoners and apparently contracted an illness during that time. He has received no test results despite waiting through over five months of serious illness.

Salem Asad Zaghil, from Tulkarem, is also held in Ramon prison. He has suffered an abdominal injury that has persisted since he was injured by occupation forces when he was arrested; he also suffers from an irregular heartbeat. He has not been given any tests or medication or treatment. Ali Fahmi Dana of Jerusalem is also held in Ramon prison; for five years he has suffered from intestinal disease and has been met repeatedly with delays in treatment. He had an unsuccessful earlier hernia surgery and was told he would need surgery, yet no action has been taken and his pain continues.

Mohammed Fahim Shalaldeh, held in Ofer prison, is suffering constant and severe pain and dizziness, can no longer hear in his right ear, and has been told he is waiting for an operation, yet no apparent action has been taken. Ayman Khalil Hassan Ali, of Bethlehem, is also in Ofer prison, where he suffers from high blood pressure and spinal pain. He has passed out on several occasions and was once taken to Shere Tzedek medical center, but was then returned to prison and given no further treatment despite his persistent symptoms.

Palestinian Authority security forces detaining students, former prisoners for political activity

5 November 2016

Several former political prisoners in Israeli jails have been arrested recently by Palestinian Authority security forces, including brothers Imad and Abdullah Amlah of al-Khalil, who were detained on 2 November, following the arrest of former prisoner Issam Ramadan of Nablus. Khader Adnan, the prominent former prisoner and long-term hunger striker who twice won his freedom from Israeli administrative detention with his strikes, demanded the PA release all political detainees.

The three former prisoners were accused of involvement with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, which issued a statement noting that these arrests come as part of PA security cooperation with the Israeli occupation under the Oslo agreements, and reflect the PA’s role in policing and repressing Palestinian resistance rather than defending Palestinian security and rights. The Amla brothers’ laptop was confiscated from their home by PA security forces.

Alongside the targeting of former prisoners for arrest, PA security forces have recently arrested 13 university students, many of whom are active in student union activities on their campuses. Four of the imprisoned students – Obeida Ahmad Mohammed Marei, Yousef Shawwar, Faris Bader Jaber and Mumin Qawasmeh – have launched a hunger strike for their release. The families of the four strikers have expressed their concern for their children, especially as a PA court in al-Khalil decided to extend Shawwar’s detention on allegations of insulting PA President Mahmoud Abbas, after the student posted on social media criticizing Abbas’ attendance at the funeral of former Israeli president and war criminal Shimon Peres.

Mumim Qawasmeh, Jibril Abu Sneineh, Faris Jaber, Obeida Marei and Yousef Shawwar are all students at the Palestinian Polytechnic University in al-Khalil. Detained students Salah Suweil and Ahmed Kassem study at Bir Zeit University, while Anas al-Anida studies at Hebron University. Five students at An-Najah university continue to be held without charge: Ahmad Marshoud, Fahd Yassin, Baraa Jarrar, Yasser Yamin and Walid Asidah.

The Islamic Bloc at Al-Najah University denounced the arrest of its five members, calling upon the PA to stop the practice of political arrests of students for involvement with political activity.

Samidoun statement: Solidarity with Jailed HDP Leaders, Freedom for all Kurdish and Turkish Political Prisoners

5 November 2016

yuksekdag-demirtas Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network expresses its solidarity with the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) of Turkey, its elected leadership and members of the Turkish parliament targeted for arrest and persecution. The party’s co-chairs, Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag, have been arrested and jailed alongside seven other members of parliament and amid reports that arrest warrants are outstanding for all of the 59 HDP parliamentarians. We demand their immediate release and the release of all of the Turkish and Kurdish political prisoners in Turkish jails.

A few days ago, the two co-mayors of Diyarbakir, Gulten Kisanak and Firat Anli, and a former member of parliament, Ayla Akat, were also arrested, alongside multiple other political arrests like those of HDP Vice-Chair Alp Altinors. These actions reflect a policy of total repression against the Kurdish movement and the opposition in Turkey, particularly the progressive and left opposition.

Palestinian symbol of resistance Leila Khaled earlier issued a statement urging Altinors’ release upon his September arrest:

In addition, during the last week thousands of academics were fired from their academic positions in Turkish universities and tens of journalists, like the editor-in-chief and journalists from Cumhuriyet newspaper, were arrested. This follows upon the persecution, arrest and jailing of thousands associated with the HDP and the DBP since July 2015. People taking to the streets in the past day to protest these attacks in cities like Ankara and Istanbul have faced harsh repression, including the use of live bullets to disperse protesters. The elected officials of 28 local councils, most led by the HDP, have been removed under the pretext of a “state of emergency” and replaced by officials supporting Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Parti. 30 democatically-elected Kurdish mayors are currently imprisoned.

In addition, several of the leaders and activists currently facing detention and persecution, including Gultan Kisanak, Gulsen Yildirim, Selma Irmak, and other detained leaders are not facing political detention for the first time; Gultan Kisanak in particular was subject to systematic torture in Diyarbakir prison.

The pretext for this attack on the leftist, democratic HDP is the same pretext that we see used internationally to suppress Palestinian and solidarity organizing and national liberation movements broadly – “support for terrorism.” From the United States to France to Turkey, “terror” charges are a means to silence, criminalize and suppress resistance organizing and liberation movements. The specific attack on the HDP leadership and MPs is framed as a “refusal to answer prosecutors’ questions,” or, in other words, a refusal to participate in an unjust process that has its only goal the suppression and criminalization of progressive and popular movements. “I demand nothing and expect nothing from you. Only the people who elected me can interrogate me about my political activities,” said Yuksekdag. We note the similarity to the use of the grand jury in the United States to criminalize organizing, including solidarity organizing for Palestine, and the important example of the “Midwest 23” in refusing to testify before a grand jury about their political activities.

We also note this escalation in the use of bogus “terror” charges to suppress Kurdish movements and political organizing comes hand in hand with the “normalization” of Turkish-Israeli relations and the escalation of military and intelligence collaboration between the Turkish and Israeli states. Such collaboration can only serve as a mechanism to surveil, repress and attack popular resistance and liberation movements.

We also note the support of the HDP and its leaders, including Figen Yuksekdag, for the Palestinian people’s liberation movement and the struggle of Palestinian prisoners. Turkish and Kurdish political prisoners have long engaged in hunger strikes and suffered torture in prison, an experience of struggle that has only escalated their solidarity with Palestinian prisoners’ demands for freedom and justice.

Following his arrest, Demirtas said, “We want you to know that we will abide by the struggle for democracy, freedom, and peace, waged with devotion by our people….No matter what the circumstances are, we will continue our democratic and political struggle.” We declare our solidarity with the targeted movements in Turkey, including the Kurdish movement and the HDP, and call for the immediate release of all detainees.

Take Action: Demand release of detained Palestinian human rights defender and BDS leader Salah Khawaja #FreeSalah

5 November 2016

Palestinian human rights defender and Secretary of the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee Salah Khawaja remains imprisoned and denied access to a lawyer at the Petah Tikva interrogation center.

Khawaja, 46, a leading member of the Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign (Stop the Wall) and BDS leader, has been detained under interrogation since 26 October, when he was seized in a violent pre-dawn military raid on his home. As occupation forces raided his home, they sprayed tear gas in the area entering many neighborhood homes in an attempt to quell protests against the seizure of this popular activist. The Palestinian BDS National Committee, of which Khawaja serves as secretary, is the broadest Palestinian civil society coalition that works to lead and support the BDS movement, the growing international movement for the boycott of Israel.

On 31 October, the Israeli Military Court of Appeals rejected an appeal filed by Khawaja’s lawyers with Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association against his lengthy interrogation period and denial of access to a lawyer. Another hearing will take place in the case on Sunday, 6 November.

Front Line Defenders, Unadikum and Stop the Wall have issued calls for action in support of Khawaja and urging international attention to support this case of a Palestinian human rights defender targeted for his activism.

Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network joins in the call for action in the case of Salah Khawaja and demands his immediate freedom. We urge international action in support of Salah and all imprisoned Palestinians.

Take action!

1. Participate in the Front Line Defenders action, urging the Israeli state to immediately release Khawaja and end its persecution of Palestinian human rights defenders. Join in here: https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/action/take-action-salah-khawaja

2. Demand your country’s officials speak up and end the silence and complicity in the detention of Salah Khawaja and other Palestinian human rights defenders, and over 7,000 Palestinian political prisoners. Call your foreign affairs officials – and members of parliament – and urge action on this case.

Call during your country’s regular office hours:

Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop: + 61 2 6277 7500
Canadian Foreign Minister Stephane Dion: +1-613-996-5789
European Union Commissioner Federica Mogherini: +32 (0) 2 29 53516
New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully: +64 4 439 8000
United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson: +44 20 7008 1500
United States President Barack Obama: 1-202-456-1111

Tell your government:

Salah Khawaja, a Palestinian human rights defender, has been arbitrarily detained since 26 October and denied access to a lawyer. Salah is one of the primary Palestinian voices against the illegal settlements and wall destroying Palestinian land.
Your government must demand Salah’s immediate release and an end to the persecution of Palestinian human rights defenders by the Israeli state.
Israel’s interrogation of Salah at Petah Tikva violates the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilians during Times of War, which prohibits the transfer of protected civilians to the territory of the occupying power. Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilians during Times of War, which prohibits the transfer of protected civilians to the territory of the occupying power.
The government must do more than express concern, but should also take serious measures to end these violations. Representatives of your government should attend Salah’s hearings beginning on 6 November, and suspend agreements with Israeli institutions involved in the ongoing imprisonment and oppression of Palestinians.

Women Prisoners’ Update: Released prisoners urge action to support freedom struggle

5 November 2016

Palestinian prisoner Amira Hmeidat, 35, was released after a year in Israeli occupation prisons on 3 November, returning to her home in Surif village near Al-Khalil. Speaking with Asra Voice, she emphasized the difficult conditions faced by imprisoned Palestinian women, especially those held in Damon prison, as it lacks fundamental necessities and the women are forced to repeatedly travel long distances via the “bosta.” This issue has been raised by Palestinian hunger strikers Samer Issawi and Munther Snobar, now on their 12th day of hunger strike for improved conditions for Palestinian prisoners.

Hmeidat also urged that Palestinian prisoners be prioritized in the Palestinian and international political context. Hmeidat had been imprisoned since 16 November 2015, when more than 30 occupation military vehicles surrounded her home and invaded it, attempting to seize her son who was not present.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Arwa Sultan was seized by Israeli occupation forces on Thursday evening, 3 November, from her own home in Al-Khalil. Her husband, Jad Sultan, was arrested ten days before; they are the parents of six children.

Palestinian Jerusalemite Ghadeer Jamjoum was released on Friday evening, 4 November, after 24 days under interrogation in the Moskobiya interrogation and detention center, during which she was forbidden from seeing a lawyer. She was seized by occupation soldiers in a raid on her home in Al-Ram on 12 October, and during her time in interrogation, the Israeli occupation prohibited the publication of any details about her arrest. Upon her release, she was ordered to two weeks house arrest, a fine of 2,000 NIS ($450 USD) and a bail of 10,000 NIS ($2200 USD).

On Sunday, 30 October, Majida Shureitah, 47, the mother of Palestinian prisoner Maher Shureitah, was arrested as she headed to visit him inside Israeli prison; she was accused of attempting to smuggle forbidden items to her son, who is imprisoned without charge or trial under administrative detention. Maher has been imprisoned for seven months. Majida was released on Friday, 4 November after a week of detention.

Also released on Tuesday, 1 November was Amina Salah, 30, of al-Khader village west of Bethlehem after ten months in Israeli prisons. She was arrested on 16 June 2015 as she visited her then-imprisoned husband, Othman Salah, in Eshel prison and accused of attempting to smuggle a mobile phone into the prison. Amina was accompanied by their six-year-old son at the time, who was given to her parents, and she was held under interrogation for ten days. She was released on bail of 30,000 NIS ($7,000 USD) and held under house arrest for six months. In January 2016, less than two weeks after her husband was released from prison, she was re-arrested and ordered to a total sentence of 15 months imprisonment, during which she was held in HaSharon and Damon prisons. She was released after serving two-thirds of her sentence, 10 months, and was welcomed home by a large crowd of family and friends.

In an interview with Asra Voice, Salah thanked the radio station for its efforts to continue communication between prisoners and their families on behalf of all the women prisoners in Damon; she emphasized that the prisoners are being isolated from their families and communities and are demanding freedom.

There are approximately 60 women prisoners held in Israeli prisons, including 13 minor girls under 18. On Tuesday, 1 November, Fatima Badran Abu Mialeh, 17, from al-Khalil, was seized by occupation forces at a checkpoint near the Ibrahimi mosque, accusing her of carrying a knife in her bag, allegedly found by occupation soldiers as they searched her.

She joins the other girls held in HaSharon prison, including Istabraq Noor, 15, whose sister Sondos provided an interview to Asra Voice about Istabraq’s case. Istabraq was shot in her hand and arm on 21 October 2015 near the colonial settlement of Yitzhar near her city of Nablus and was seriously injured. Accused of attempting to stab an occupation settler despite the lack of injury to any party other than Istabraq, she was sentenced to 20 months in prison. Sondos said that Istabraq has been denied family visits for five months, that the family has been prohibited from sending her clothes and that she continues to be denied proper medical treatment or access to an independent doctor; she continues to suffer after taking three bullets in her right arm. Sondos also expressed her concern for Istabraq’s education, noting that she is receiving only minimal access to education inside the prison.

Meanwhile, Palestinian poet Dareen Tatour, 34, continues to struggle against house imprisonment in her village of Reineh. For over a year, Tatour, a Palestinian with Israeli citizenship, has faced persecution, including a raid on her home, several months of imprisonment, house arrest far from her home village in Tel Aviv and now house arrest in Reineh, based on charges of “incitement” for publishing her poem “Resist, my people, resist them” on YouTube. Her case has drawn attention and support from writers, poets and artists around the world including PEN, the international freedom of expression association.

Tatour’s lawyers filed a motion to lift the house arrest conditions on her, given the lengthy pendency of the case and its ongoing nature, stating that the prosecution presented no substantial evidence in the main case. The next hearing in the incitement case will take place on 17 November. On 31 October, a hearing was held on her house arrest, which ended with a request for an additional security report; the next hearing will take place on 14 November.

14 November, Asheville: Child Detention in Palestine with Azadeh Shahshahani

5 November 2016

Monday, 14 November
12:00 pm
UNC Asheville
Sherill Center
Mission Health Mountain View Room
Asheville, North Carolina

Azadeh Shahshahani, legal and advocacy director for Project South, will present a discussion of detention of Palestinian children by Israeli security forces, in a free public talk at noon on Monday, Nov. 14 in UNC Asheville’s Sherrill Center, in the Mission Health Mountain View Room.

Shahshahani formerly served as national security/immigrants’ rights project director with the ACLU of Georgia, and she is a past president of the National Lawyers Guild (NLG). Through the NLG, she participated in international delegations, including a delegation focused on the situation of Palestinian political prisoners. Shahshahani also serves as chair of Georgia Detention Watch, co-chair of the U.S. Human Rights Network Working Group on National Security, and on the Advisory Council of the American Association of Jurists.

Shahshahani has a master’s degree in modern Middle Eastern and North African studies from the University of Michigan, and earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School where she was articles editor for the Michigan Journal of International Law.

This event is co-sponsored by UNC Asheville’s Belk Distinguished Professorship in the Humanities, and by Just Peace for Israel/Palestine of Western North Carolina. For more information contact Belk Distinguished Professor Mark Gibney, mgibney@unca.edu or 828.250.3870.

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