Freed prisoner Mohammed al-Taj launches hunger strike for health care action from PA

7 July 2013

Freed Palestinian prisoner Mohammed Al-Taj declared he would go on hunger strike on Sunday, July 7 demanding action around his medical treatment. Hilmi Al-Araj, the director of Hurriyat (freedoms) center, said in a press release on Saturday that Taj has waited for two and a half months to be treated, since his release on medical grounds on April 18, 2013, after his lungs failed, but there has been no action except bureaucracy from the Palestinian Authority’s health ministry, and he has also called upon the office of the PA presidency for action but had achieved no results.

Taj, who suffers from pulmonary fibrosis, is in need of lung transplant operation after he was released from Israeli jails due to his serious condition. Without a lung transplant, his lifespan is estimated to be about eight months.

Araj said that Taj should be transferred to a European country as 85% of his lungs are not working and he is in urgent need of specialized medical care. Taj was detained in 2003 and was serving a 15-year sentence; he was released, with no treatment, by the occupation prisons shortly following the death of Maysara Abu Hamdieh and widespread protests across Palestine against the medical mistreatment and abuse in occupation prisons.

Palestinian researcher: 5000 Palestinian prisoners, including 234 children, in occupation prisons

6 July 2013

Former prisoner, researcher and analyst, Abdel Nasser Farwana, reported that since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada on September 28, 2000 until today, there were over 78,000 Palestinians arrested from all sectors of Palestinian society.

Among these arrests included over 9,000 children under 10, and nearly 60 Palestinian legislators and ministers in addition to numerous journalists, academics, and hundreds of political leaders.

Ferwana said that at the present time, Israel is holding approximately 5000 prisoners in 17 prisons and detention centres in harsh condition, and that the prisoners lack the minimum human rights stipulated in international law and human rights instruments. In particular, he pointed to the continued policy of medical neglect and abuse and physical and psychological torture.

83.5% of the detainees are from the West Bank, 8.7% from Gaza, and 7.8% from Jerusalem and Occupied Palestine ’48. Most prisoners are held in Negev, Eshel, Nafha, Ohla Kedar, Ramon, Gilboa, Shata, Ofer, Asqelan, Hadorim, Hasharon, Ramle, and Megiddo.

29.6% of prisoners are married, and 70.4% are single. There are 234 children, 15 women prisoners, 14 members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, and 153 administrative detainees. 51 of the child prisoners are under 16. Among the women prisoners, Lena Jarbouni has been held for over 11 years.

There are 537 prisoners serving one or several life sentences.

There are 103 prisoners who are “veteran prisoners,” held before the Oslo agreement, including 83 prisoners who have been held for 20 years, among them 24 who have been held for over 25 years. Karim Younes has been detaines for over 30 years.

Since 1967, 204 prisoners have died in occupation prisons due to torture, medical neglect, or beatings, the latest of which were Arafat Jaradat and Maysara Abu Hamdiyeh, in addition to hundreds of prisoners who died after their liberation from prison due to the impacts of torture and medical neglect.

Ferwana called on all Palestinians, national and Islamic forces and political parties and social institutions to activate and raise the level of their solidarity to befit the sacrifices of the prisoners, the role of their cause, and put an end to the violations committed against them on the road to freedom and liberation for all prisoners.

Palestinian prisoner Hussam Mattar penalized for hunger strike

6 July 2013

Palestinian prisoner Hussam Mattar, from Jerusalem, has been on hunger strike since June 1, 2013 and is currently suffering from pain throughout his body. Mattar’s wife reported that the prison administration is imposing severe penalties on her husband in order to pressure him to suspend his hunger strike.

Fines have been imposed upon him, he has been barred from family visits, and transferred from prison to prison.

She reported that he has been transferred from isolation in Nafha, to Ohla Kedar in Bir Saba, where he was held for four days, then returned back to Nafha for one night, then back to Ohla Kedar for one night, and then to isolation in Asqelan prison.

The cell is only two meters by 1.5 meters, lacking the minimum necessities, and is infested with insects and cockroaches, with surveillance cameras inside the cell. Mattar’s lawyer reported that he is suffering from severe head, muscle and kidney pain and has lost 22 kg during his strike. Mattar was arrested on October 19, 2007, sentenced to life imprisonment, and is the father of 2 children, Saqr (7) and Nasrallah (5). He is demanding his freedom, and to be recognized as a prisoner of war.

Ill Palestinian prisoners in Ramle subject to abusive raids, Asqelan prisoners continue to boycott clinic

6 July 2013

Palestinian lawyer Hanan al-Khatib reported that a special repressive force called Masada stormed the prison clinic in Ramle at 7:30 pm on July 5, and remained, ransacking the prisoners’ areas, for 6 hours, destroying many prisoners’ belongings.

Riad Amour, a representative of the ill prisoners, said that these “inspections” are common and provocative, many prisoners in the section have disabilities and use wheelchairs and are unable to protect themselves or their property.

16 ill prisoners in the clinic returned their meals in protest of the raid, saying that if these raids continue they will boycott their medicine, said Khatib. She warned that several prisoners ar not receiving their medicine, including Moqadah Mansour, who has a tumor on his neck that is feared to be cancerous, but the prison will not send him to an outside hospital for examination or treatment. She also noted the deteriorating conditions of other prisoners, such as Moatassem Raddad, who is a cancer patient who needs monthly injections, but only receives them every 2 months on the ground that they are too expensive. She also said that Nahed Aqrah’s health status is still difficult after his second foot was amputated, and the area continues to be inflamed and painful.

Reports also came from Asqelan prison that the number of ill prisoners continue to increase, as prisoners continue to boycott the prison clinic in protest of medical neglect and mistreatment.

Nasser Abu Hamid, representative of Asqelan prisoners, said through his lawyer that some prisoners have stopped taking medicine, such as Samer Abu Leila and Yousef Nadjah, in protest of medical mistreatment. Hazem Abu Eid, a prisoner from al-Khalil, arrested on June 26, 2013, is suffering an injury in his abdomen, knee, and right leg due to being shot, and needs knee surgery. There are 11 difficult cases in Asqelan prison, including Muhammed Brash, who is hard of hearing, his left leg has been amputated, and his vision in his left eye is severely impaired; Naim Shawamre, who has serious laryngeal problems; Hazem Abu Eid (above); Mohammed Daoud, with severe dental problems, high blood pressure, and psoriasis; Fouad Shoubaki, who has hemorrhoids and high bood pressure; Sharif Naji, with high blood pressure, stomach ailments and high cholesterol; Ahmed Al Jaafar, with diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease; Ahmed Shehadeh, with hypertension and diabetes; Muntasser Abu Ghalyoun, who has eye problems; Samer Abu Leila, who has high blood pressure and heart disease; and Othman Younes, whose fingers of his left hand were amputated and who suffers from intestinal problems.

Jordanian hunger strikers suffering medical crisis, demand action

6 July 2013

Palestinian lawyers reported on July 6 that the conditions of three Jordanian prisoners on hunger strike in Soroka Hospital, Mohammad Rimawi, Muneer Mar’i and Alaa Hammad, had become very serious.

Muneer Mar’i said that the Jordanian government bears responsibility for failing to communicate with the prisoners, intervene, or respond to their demands for freedom and return to Jordan, and called on the Jordanian government to put real pressure on the Israeli occupation to put an end to this ongoing situation that will not end inside the prisons.

Mohammad Rimawi is suffering serious chest pains and fever, has been vomiting blood, and is no longer able to walk. All of the strikers have lost significant weight and are bound to their hospital beds.

Rimawi, Mar’i and Hammad are three of five prisoners holding Jordanian citizenship on hunger strike. They have been on hunger strike for 66 days, alongside their fellow strikers Hamza Othman al-Dabbas and Abdullah Barghouthi. Barghouthi, who is held in Afula hospital, was severely assaulted earlier in the week by his jailers, who keep him chained to his hospital bed.

London: Activists protest in solidarity with Jordanian hunger strikers

6 July 2013

Inminds Palestinian Prisoners Campaign activists in London held their second protest outside the Jordanian embassy in solidarity with the Jordanian hunger strikers on Friday, July 5.

They had issued the following call for the protest. For more information, please see Inminds on Facebook.

“Friday 5th July will mark 65 days of hunger strike for 5 Palestinian political prisoners with Jordanian citizenship in Israeli occupation jails. The prisoners families are asking for the immediate release of all Palestinian political prisoners, and in the very least Israel be made to abide by its side of the shameful Wadi Araba normalisation agreement which King Hussein signed with Israel in 1994, under which Jordanian prisoners in Israeli jails should be transferred to Jordan to serve their sentences where at least the families of the prisoners can visit – Israel is at present preventing families of the prisoners from visiting them. The prisoners are also demanding Israel disclose the where about of 20 Jordanian prisoners who are missing, and to return the bodies of the prisoners who have died in Israel custody, which Israel has dumped in numbered graves, back to their families.

It should be noted that Jordanians have consistently demanded their government tear up the treacherous Wadi Araba peace agreement in which King Hussein sold out the Palestinians, and in return gained nothing other than shame for Jordan. Needless to say Israel has been a serial violator of the treaty from day one.. its assassination attempt of Khaled Meshaal in 1997 to its Judaisation of Jerusalem, and its restrictions on access to holy places in Jerusalem..

The five hunger strikers: Abdullah Al-Barghothi, Hamzah Al-Dabbas, Muneer Merei, Alaa Hammad and Mohammad Al-Rimawi have each lost over 18kg in weight. Some of the prisoners have lost their ability to walk and are confined to wheel chairs. Mohammad Al-Rimawi, who suffers from a heart disorder where sometimes his heart beat is 125 and sometimes it drops to 50 beats per minute, is being denied his medicine by the Israeli Prison Service until he agrees to stop his hunger strike. Prisoners are being pressured to stop their hunger strikes with their cells being raided and attack dogs being used in order to intimidate them. As the strike persists the methods employed by Israel are getting more violent. On 26th June 2013 Israeli guards attacked Abdullah Al-Barghouti in the hospital, they dragged him from his hospital bed to the concrete floor and kicked him in the face, causing bleeding.

There have been over 85 demonstrations in Jordan by the families of the prisoners – elderly mothers standing in the burning sun, at several protests each day! Even a 22km solidarity march from one city to another.. All of this falling on deaf ears with the Jordanian government shamefully abandoning the prisoners and according to some accounts even pressuring the prisoners to give up their hunger strike.

Terrified by the iron will of the families and friends of the hunger strikes to relentlessly carry on protesting everyday and the support and respect they garner in wider society and the resulting momentum building up to end the states total submission to every whim of the Zionist enemy, the Jordanian security services have come down very hard on the protesting families. Family members have been threatened with arrest if they persist to champion their loved ones in Israeli dungeons. They dragged away a 16 year old boy, a nephew of one of the hunger strikes, to prison and locked him up for 3 days – his crime was to hand out a leaflet about his uncles’ imprisonment in an Israeli prison. On another occasion, wearing military camouflage uniforms that have never seen service on the enemy front line, the security forces with batons drawn, attacked a peaceful protest with plain cloths security service personnel cowardly targeting hunger striker Muneer Meree’s brother, assaulting him before disappearing back behind the uniform lines.

Its with this backdrop of intimidation, that we made contact with activists in Jordan. The families and campaigners in Jordan courageously, at great personal risk to themselves, asked us to help internationalise the campaign by protesting in solidarity with them in London outside the Jordanian Embassy in a joint protest, with them protesting in Jordan outside the Royal Court (Central Government buildings) on the same day at the same time. That was last Sundays protest, this Friday we build on that success with another protest outside the Jordanian Embassy.”

PFLP prison branch rejects demands that Mohammad Rimawi end hunger strike

5 July 2013

The Israel Prison Services abruptly demanded to meet with the leadership of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine prison branch on Thursday, July 4, in an attempt to pressure them to convince PFLP leader and Jordanian hunger striker Mohammad Rimawi to break his open hunger strike that has now continued for 65 days. Rimawi is one of five Palestinian prisoners with Jordanian citizenship who have been engaged in a 65-day hunger strike, along with Abdullah Barghouthi, Muneer Mar’i, Alaa Hammad, and Hamza Othman al-Dabbas.

The IPS demanded the leadership of the PFLP inside the prisons call upon Rimawi to lift his strike, which they inside the prisons rejected, saying they stand fully with the Jordanian prisoners on hunger strike and particularly Rimawi.

The PFLP leadership emphasized their support for the demands of the Jordanian prisoners and the justice of their cause, warning the Zionist prison officials of the consequences of deterioriation in their health and the seriousness of their situation, particularly as some, including Rimawi, suffer from serious diseases.

The Front leadership in the prisons called on the Palestinian, Jordanian and Arab people to engage in the broadest campaign of solidarity with the prisoners on hunger strike, and called upon people around the world to pressure their governments to take action to save the lives of the hunger striking prisoners.

There were additional multiple reports that Abdullah Barghouthi’s health is significantly worsening after suffering multiple assaults by his jailors.

The Palestinian Prisoners’ Committee in Nablus visited Beit Rima, the hometown of Mohammad Rimawi and Abdullah Barghouthi, after visiting the homes of imprisoned PFLP general secretary Ahmad Sa’adat and leader Ahed Abu Ghoulmeh. The delegation met with families of the prisoners in Beit Rima and emphasized the importance of supporting all prisoners and their families, especially those on hunger strike.

Palestinian academic Fadi Asideh arrested as he returned to Palestine from completing his Ph.D.

5 July 2013

Israeli forces arrested Al-Najah University lecturer Dr. Fadi Asideh on July 4 on the Karama bridge, as he returned to Palestine from Malaysia after completing his Ph.D. in Arabic language. Asideh is from the town of Tel in Nablus.

Fuad Khuffash, director of Ahrar Center for Prisoners’ Studies and Human Rights, said that Asideh, who left the country in July 2009 for his studies, recently was awarded his doctoral degree in Arabic language from the University of Malaysia, and that as he decided to return to serve his country he was arrested by the occupation and moved to Petah Tikva interrogation center.

Khuffash stated that Israel has been imposing an intellectual siege on the Palestinians through the ongoing arrests of academics and lecturers. The occupation holds in its jails six Palestinian academics. Asideh’s brother, Mohammad, is also held in occupation prisons.

Amnesty International: Stop judicial bullying of Palestinian activist Nariman Tamimi

4 July 2013

Amnesty International issued the following statement on July 4, 2013:

Amnesty International has accused the Israeli authorities of bullying and judicial harassment of Nariman Tamimi, a Palestinian rights activist who was placed under partial house arrest today to prevent her taking part in peaceful protests while she awaits trial next week.

“This is an unrelenting campaign of harassment, the latest in a litany of human rights violations against Nariman Tamimi, her family, and her fellow villagers. These arbitrary restrictions should be lifted immediately and the charges should be dropped,” said Philip Luther, Middle East and North Africa Director at Amnesty International.

Tamimi was arrested along with another activist Rana Hamadi on Friday 28 June, when villagers of Nabi Saleh walk towards a nearby spring in protest against the loss of their land. In 2009 Israeli settlers occupied the Al-Qaws spring near Nabi Saleh village where Tamimi lives. The illegal settlement now enjoys the protection of the military.

During the protest a soldier approached them waving a piece of paper and saying they could be arrested if they did not leave. When they tried to leave the area, more soldiers approached and arrested them. Both women were charged with being in a “closed military zone”.

Following their release on bail on Monday, the court has now put them under partial house arrest. They are not allowed to leave their family homes between 9am to 5pm on Fridays when the weekly protest takes place.

“They have been denied the basic human right to peacefully protest over land illegally seized by Israeli settlers, and the Israeli judiciary has used spurious legal tools to punish them for exercising their basic human right to peaceful protest,” said Philip Luther.

Speaking to Amnesty International following her arrest, Nariman Tamimi described how the two women were kept in conditions that included being held in leg-cuffs, detained overnight in a car, and held in a van carrying male Israeli prisoners who she said shouted verbal abuse at them and intimidated them physically.

Tamimi has already suffered previous arrests and raids on her home. Her husband Bassem has been jailed least twice and held as a prisoner of conscience.

Her brother Rushdi Tamimi was shot in the back with live ammunition by Israeli soldiers during a demonstration last year. He died two days later in hospital. Video evidence shows that Israeli soldiers delayed his family’s attempts to take him to hospital.

“This shows the sustained brutality of the military and the Israeli authorities’ determination to target and harass those prepared to stand up for their rights. They use every tool in the box to intimidate activists and their families into silence,” said Philip Luther.

Since 2009, Israel has banned Palestinians, including landowners, from access to their spring and surrounding land while settlers enjoyed free access to the spring and were allowed to continue building in its vicinity.

The weekly protests are characterized by unnecessary and excessive use of force by the Israeli military, including live fire, rubber coated metal bullets, stun grenades thrown at protestors, pepper spray, batons, and the misuse of teargas.

Israeli forces have killed two protesters at Nabi Saleh, and have injured hundreds of others in the last four years. The subsequent military investigations have not met international standards of independence or partiality.

Soldiers regularly raid the village, conducting house searches and arresting people including children late at night.

Nariman Tamimi and Rana Hamadi have been charged with being in a “closed military zone”. The trial is scheduled for Tuesday 9 July.

19 Palestinians seized by occupation forces in raids across the West Bank

4 July 2013

silwann IMEMC reported that dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded various districts in the occupied West Bank, and kidnapped 19 Palestinians, clashes have been reported.

Soldiers kidnapped Hasan Breijiyya, coordinator of the Popular Committee Against the Wall In Bethlehem. as they attacked a nonviolent protest against a visit of the Israeli Transportation Minister to the southern entrance of the town as part of plans for a settler road.

Local sources in the Al-Jalazoun refugee camp, east of the central West Bank city of Ramallah, have reported that the army invaded the camp, broke into and searched several homes, causing damage, and kidnapped three residents.

The three have been identified as Noureddeen Oleyyan, 25, Ma’rouf Bajes Nakhla, 23, and Tahreer Al-Araysha, 20.

Soldiers also invaded Bodrus village, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, and kidnapped eight Palestinians identified as Abdullah Shokry Awad, Ahmad Shokry Awad, Sa’adat Shabaan Awad, Kamal Hasan Ali, Nasser Marar, Asrar Yousef Ibrahim, Mohammad Naim Marar, and Mohammad Abdul-Karim.

Furthermore, several Israeli military jeeps invaded the village of Ya’bod, near the northern West Bank city of Jenin, and kidnapped Majdi Ghazi Harzallah, 23, Ezzeddeen Farouq Harzallah, 20, and Mohammad Tawfiq Abu Baker.

Dozens of soldiers also invaded the Al-Khader town, near Bethlehem, and kidnapped one resident identified as Yousef Aref Salah, 24. Soldiers also invaded the home of Kamel Harzallah and violently searched it.

Clashes have been reported between local youths and Israeli soldiers after the army violently searched the homes of the kidnapped Palestinians.

Soldiers fired gas bombs and concussion grenades; several residents have been treated for the effects of teargas inhalation.

In Nablus, in the northern part of the West Bank, the army kidnapped one Palestinian identified as Wael Ahmad At-Tabouq, 20, after violently breaking into a home and searching it causing property damage. The soldiers claimed to be looking for weapons; no weapons were found.

Dozens of soldiers also invaded Tal village, west of Nablus, and kidnapped one resident identified as Sameh Zeidan.

In related news, soldiers invaded Al-Yamoun town, west of Jenin and broke into the home of former political prisoner, Imad Najeeb Sammoudy, searched the property and interrogated him.

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