Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel
Prisoners Archive - September 2008
Treatment of Prisoners and Detainees by Israel and Others
Prisoners Archive - September 2008
Treatment of Prisoners and Detainees by Israel and Others
| Home | Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel Prisoners Archive - September 2008 Treatment of Prisoners and Detainees by Israel and Others |
|
|
|
Palestinians claim detainee in Jericho prison died from torture Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 9/30/2008 Shadi Muhammad Shahin died Monday night in the Jericho prison run by the Palestinian Authority. While the circumstances around his death remain unclear, his family claims that he died due to torture by the Palestinian police. According to the Palestinian Information Center, a Hamas-run website, Shahin, who was in his thirties, died Monday after being tortured for some time. The Palestinian police, run by the Fateh-affiliated Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, claim that Shahin died of illness, and promised to conduct a full autopsy and investigation of the death. Jericho prison is the main Palestinian Authority-run prison, although Israeli occupying military forces have, in the past, raided the prison to extract men they wish to imprison in Israeli prisons. The most famous raid took place in 2006, when Israeli forces bombed and demolished parts of the prison, killing a number of prisoners. Journalists to Abbas: Release jailed reporters in West Bank Ma’an News Agency 9/30/2008 Gaza – Ma’an – A journalists’ committee on Tuesday called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to release all reporters currently held in Palestinian Authority (PA) jails. The group demanded that Abbas release jailed news officials in West Bank prisons to spend time with their families during ’Eid. Among those detained are Farid Hamad, Khaldun Al-Mathlum, Abdullah Adawi, Asid Al-Amarneh. The committee said that journalists have a right to free speech, though it also admitted that reporters have a responsibility to avoid intensifying the Fatah-Hamas rivalry, according to a statement. [end] A prisoner dies under torture in Jericho prison on the eve of Eid Palestinian Information Center 9/30/2008 File picture of political prisoners in Jericho prison RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Palestinian sources revealed that a young man from Ramallah died Monday evening in Jericho jail, which is run by Abbas’s PA, as a result of sever torture meted to him inside the jail. Shadi Muhammad Shahin, a Palestinian in his thirties from the Ramallah district died in Jericho jail, according to the sources. The PA police claimed that Shahin died as a result of illness and not under torture and that an autopsy will be carried out to determine the cause of death. Reasons behind the detention of Shahin are not clear yet, but the PA police say that he was detained pending prosecution in a case brought by the attorney general in Jericho. It is, however, known that the Jericho jail is used mostly for detaining political prisoners and elements of the resistance from various resistance factions. Mothers of detainees in Abbas’s jails call for their release before talks Palestinian Information Center 9/29/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Mothers of Palestinian detainees in Abbas’s jails called on all Palestinian parties who want to see the Palestinian reconciliation talks succeed to work for the release of their sons. The mothers issued a statement in which they said it was not right for a Palestinian administration to detain Palestinians for their political affiliation, and if everyone claims to be interested in reconciliation, then political prisoners should be released. The mothers said in the statement that they were optimistic when they heard about Fatah agreeing to the talks, but were disappointed that there was no mention of their sons’ plight when Fatah presented Egyptian officials with their views on the reconciliation. They ended their statement by calling on Hamas leadership to make the release of political prisoners a condition before starting talks. Palestinian man, accused of shooting diplomat, dies in Jericho prison Ma’an News Agency 9/29/2008 Jericho - Ma’an - Thirty-year-old Muhammad Muhammad Shahin died in a Palestinian Authority (PA) prison on Monday, according to a police official. Shahin was detained in 2003 for shooting Nabil Amer, the Palestinian representative to Egypt while the latter was in Ramallah. The source said that Shahin, who was from the Ramallah area in the central West Bank, died of health problems and not as the result of maltreatment in prison. Police assured that a full autopsy would be performed. [end] Israeli court extends detention of DFLP Secretary General Ahmad Sa’adat Ma’an News Agency 9/28/2008 Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Israeli court extended the detention of Secretary General for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) Ahmad Sa’adat during a Sunday hearing. He is now due for release on 25 October. The Ad-Damir foundation for prisoners’ and human rights, which has been following up the Sa’adat case, said that it received a document from Israel saying that the man’s term had been extended. Sa’adat has refused to recognize Israeli courts during all hearings, and says all legal action taken against him is in fact illegal, since no indictment papers, warrants charges were brought prior to his arrest. Sa’adatexplained that all he was guilty of was performing his duty towards his people and their cause. Palestinian university professors work for release of political prisoners Ma’an News Agency 9/28/2008 Gaza – Ma’an – A delegation representing Palestinian university professors headed by Dr Husam Udwan, visited political prisoners detained by the de facto government at Al-Mashta prison in Gaza City and met with all detainees on Sunday. Dr Udwan said the visit was part of professors’ ongoing efforts to end the state of rivalry and lay the grounds for serious and real national dialogue. He explained that the delegation freely toured the prison and watched firsthand the living conditions of the political prisoners. Foods and drinks were distributed to the detainees who also had chance to telephone their families using the delegation’s cell phones. “We made sure prisoners are well-treated,” said Dr Udwan. “We are closer than ever to seeing those political prisoners in Gaza released,” he added. As for political detainees in the West Bank, “we have been making great efforts. . . Israeli soldier sentenced to 4 months for accepting bribes at checkpoint Ma’an News Agency 9/26/2008 Jerusalem - Ma’an – An Israeli soldier who took cigarettes from Palestinians in exchange for allowing them through the Qalandiya checkpoint separating the central West Bank from Jerusalem has been sentenced to four months in prison. The officer, Ofer Levy, will spend the four months in an Israeli military detention center, the Israeli magistrate’s court announced on Friday. In comparison, the checkpoint commander who held up Nahil Abu Raja, a 21-year-old pregnant Palestinian en route to a Nablus hospital after feeling contractions in her seventh month of pregnancy was sentenced to 14 days in prison. Nahil’s baby was born at the checkpoint and died after minutes, unable to receive the necessary treatment. The soldier was declared to have violated military protocol by not allowing Nahil and her husband to pass the checkpoint. Hamas’s captives in Israeli jails reject orange uniform Palestinian Information Center 9/26/2008 NABLUS, (PIC)-- The supreme committee of Hamas captives in Israeli jails has rejected on Thursday the decision of the Israeli prison authority (IPA) of changing the brown uniform of the captives to orange. In a statement it issued and a copy of which was obtained by the PIC, the committee explained that the orange uniform would produce adverse psychological repercussions on the prisoners because it is known to be the uniform of those sentenced to death, and it would replicate the picture of the captives in the infamous US concentration camp in Guantanamu. "A number of Israeli politicians had repeatedly insisted that the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails must be regarded and dealt with as "terrorists", and not as political prisoners or prisoners of war and freedom fighters", the statement pointed out. Moreover, the committee warned if the decision is implemented, it would. . . Student council members in Israeli prison PNN, Palestine News Network 9/26/2008 Ramallah -- The Israeli military court in Beer Aseeba sentenced Birzeit University’s student body president to four years in prison. Abdullah Awais’ sentence was suspended to one year and an estimated 2,000 shekel fine. Awais was a fourth year student at the Ramallah area university’s Faculty of Engineering Information Technology Department. Israeli forces arrested the young man at a checkpoint in the West Bank between eastern Nablus’ Atara Village and Birzeit. Three other student council members are in Israeli prisons including Fadi Hammad, former student body president. Israeli forces currently hold an estimated 11,000 Palestinians in its prisons. [end] Israeli soldiers injure ten, detain ten others at demonstration Ma’an News Agency 9/26/2008 Ramallah – Ma’an – Ten protesters were reportedly injured Friday during clashes at a demonstration near the West Bank city of Ni’lin. The injured Palestinians suffered from teargas inhalation after Israeli soldiers fired rounds in response to rocks thrown by residents, furious that bulldozers were preparing confiscated land to build a toxic waste dump. Ten other Palestinian youths were arrested by Israeli soldiers, who accused them of participating in the apparently peaceful rally. It was not immediately clear if the detainees were among those throwing rocks, participating in the demonstration, or both. A spokesperson for the protest group was unavailable for comment Friday as he remains hospitalized with severe injuries sustained at another demonstration on Tuesday. He had been shot in the face by a teargas canister, causing severe bruising and blood loss, according to medical officials in Ramallah. Israeli Human Rights Groups: 'Shooting a cuffed resident, oppression, not only an indecent behavior'ť Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 9/27/2008 The Israeli High Court of Justice is slated to convene on Sunday in order to discuss an urgent appeal filed by Ashraf Abu Rahma, a Palestinian resident o Na’lin village near Ramallah, who was kidnapped by the soldiers, cuffed and blindfolded before a soldier shot him in the leg. The appeal was filed in direct coordination with the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied territories (B’Tselem),Yesh Din Organization, the Association For Civil Rights in Israel, and the Popular Committee Against Torture. Abu Rahmaand the appealing organizations are demanding the court to void a ruling which stated that the brigade commander, and the soldier who opened fire, conducted an "indecent behavior", which makes this grave violation look like a minor incident. The petitioners are demanding the court to change the charges in a way which would reflect the seriousness of the. . . Israeli prisons authority deprives Palestinian prisoner of her medication Palestinian Information Center 9/25/2008 NABLUS, (PIC)-- The Palestinian prisoner Rima Daraghma, who is suffering from bad health, was denied medicine by the Israeli prisons authority, the Palestinian prisoner’s club lawyer said on Wednesday. He said that a doctor, who was allowed into jail to check her, diagnosed her illness and prescribed a medicine but the prison administration refused to give her the medicine, claiming that it was not necessary for her. Daraghma, who hails from Tobas in the West Bank, also complained that she is deprived of family visits for more than nine months and does not know the reason. [end] Dichter: Prof attack takes us back to days of Rabin assassination Shahar Ilan and Roni Singer-Heruti , and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 9/26/2008 Public Security Minister Avi Dichter joined senior political officials on Thursday in condemning a pipe bomb attack on the home of left-wing activist and Haaretz columnist Professor Ze’ev Sternhell, saying that the incident called to mind the days of the assassination of prime minister Yitzhak Rabin. Dichter described the event, which left Sternhell lightly wounded, an "assassination attempt" and a "nationalistic terror attack perpetrated, in all likelihood, by Jews, which pushes our society many years backward. " Speaking at a police ceremony in Netanya, Dichter added that "the pipe bomb that was planted yesterday should be viewed as a bomb meant to kill. The law enforcement authorities will not rest until the terrorists are put where they belong ? in prison. "Police suspect Jewish extremists of having carried out the pipe bomb attack earlier in the day. Dichter: Attack on professor Jewish terror Raanan Ben-Zur, YNetNews 9/25/2008 Internal Security Minister Dichter says pipe bomb attack on Professor Ze’ev Sternhell takes Israel back to days of Rabin assassination; law enforcement officials will not rest until ’terrorists’ behind the attack are imprisoned, he says -The attack on Professor Ze’ev Sternhell is a "nationalist terror attack apparently perpetrated by Jews," Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter said Thursday evening. " This attack takes us, Israeli and Jewish society, back many years, to the days of Yitzhak Rabin’s assassination," Dichter said at a police ceremony held in Netanya, north of Tel Aviv. "We should view the explosive planted last night as one that aimed to kill," he said. ""The law enforcement establishment and police will not rest until those terrorists will be placed where they deserve to be - in prison. PPS lawyers meet several detainees in a number of Israeli detention facilities Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 9/25/2008 Lawyers of the Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) visited a number of detainees in a several Israeli prisons and detention centers. The detainees complained of mistreatment, abuse and lack of medical attention. In Hasharon prison, one of the PPS lawyers met with detainee Reema Daraghma, from Tubas, who informed him of her very bad health condition. Daraghma told the lawyer that she was examined by the prison doctor and that he prescribed medications for her but the prison administration insists that she does not need those medications and refused to provide her any needed meds. She was barred from her visitation rights since more than nine months without being informed about the reason behind this act. The lawyer also met detainee Sanaa’ Shihada, from Qalandia refugee camp in Ramallah, who also complained of bad treatment against her and the other detainees. Jerusalem court reduces Vanunu’s sentence Aviad Glickman, YNetNews 9/23/2008 Nuclear whistleblower’s prison sentence reduced from six to three months du to ’ailing health’ and ’lack of claims his actions jeopardized Israel’s security’ - The Jerusalem District Court reduced Tuesday Mordechai Vanunu’s prison sentence from six to three months in prison due to his ailing health. The nuclear whistleblower was convicted of contacting foreign journalists and violating the travel restrictions imposed on him. The Jerusalem court hearing was held after the Magistrates’ ruling was appealed by Vanunu’s attorneys. "In light of (Vanunu’s) ailing health and the absence of claims that his actions put the country’s security in jeopardy, we believe his sentence should be reduced," the judges said. Vanunu told reporters prior to the hearing, "When I’ll be free to talk and move about I’ll be able to speak with you. Israeli doctors conduct surgery on Palestinian prisoner without his consent Palestinian Information Center 9/22/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- A Palestinian prisoner called Muhannad Awda reported that he was forcibly taken by the prison administrant to the Soroka hospital despite the fact that he was not suffering from any disease, adding that Israeli doctors drugged him and conducted an open heart surgery on him. Awda explained to the lawyer of the Mandela institute that he was not suffering from any heart disease, pointing out that he was medically tested before sending him to prison and proved free of any disease. The prisoner added that in the hospital, he was asked to sign papers authorizing doctors to conduct a surgery on him and to take his organs, but he refused, noting that before he was taken to the operating room, he asked to be allowed to contact his family or permit them to visit him, but was refused. The prisoner elaborated that during the surgical operation, he woke up suddenly and saw. . . 10 Palestinian children suffer food poisoning in Israeli prison Palestinian Information Center 9/18/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The Mandela institute for human rights and political prisoners reported that 10 Palestinian minors imprisoned in the Israeli Telmond prison have suffered food poisoning after they were served sardine meals. In a report issued following a field visit to the prison, the institute said that cases of poisoning happened among children in section 14, adding that the prison administration transferred 15 of them to the internal clinic where it was discovered that 10 minors had severe food poisoning. In another development, Palestinian prisoner Ra’ed Drabiya told the lawyer of the prisoner club who visited him that the Israeli doctors inside the prison treat him like a "guinea pig". Drabiya explained that he is suffering from a disease in his back and the prison doctors failed to diagnose it, pointing that he underwent three surgeries but to no avail. Palestinian female captive decides to go on hunger strike due to medical neglect Palestinian Information Center 9/22/2008 GAZA, (PIC)-- The ministry of prisoners and ex-prisoners’ affairs in Gaza city expressed anxiety over the deteriorated health of Palestinian female captive Amal Fayez Juma of Nablus city who suffers of womb cancer in an Israeli jail. According to Reyadh Al-Ashkar, the information officer in the ministry, Juma’s health was seriously deteriorating due to the deliberate medical neglect on the part of the Israeli prison authority (IPA), adding that Juma decided to go on hunger strike to end her ordeal. He added that the captive must be immediately released to receive proper medical treatment abroad before her illness reaches advanced levels that couldn’t be cured. "Juma had suffered internal bleeding and severe stomach pain long time ago, but the IPA refused to attend to her medical needs that made her health condition deteriorate further as they refused to heed recommendations from. . . Mayor of Jenin suffers from medical neglect in Shatta prison Palestinian Information Center 9/20/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Mayor of Jenin Hatem Jarrar, who is imprisoned in the Israeli Shatta jail, said in a letter through the lawyer of Mandela institute that his health condition deteriorated as a result of the policy of medical neglect exercised by the prison administration. Jarrar explained that he suffers from diabetes, hypertension, and kidney problems, adding that he suffered from severe pains after undergoing a surgery to repair a hernia because of the inappropriate incarceration conditions and the lack of medical follow-up. In another related context, prisoner Mohamed Al-Kaddoumi, who was sentenced to 19 years in jails, told the prisoner club’s lawyer that the Israeli doctors in the prison misdiagnosed his medical case where they told him that the cause of his ongoing unbearable stomachache was the existence of stones in his kidney and thus prescribed him kidney medicines. Detained Jerusalem deputies in Israel criticize absence of Palestinian leaders Ma’an News Agency 9/20/2008 Jerusalem – Ma’an – A letter from detained members of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) sent a letter to Palestinians that was read during the sermon at Al-Aqsa mosque on Friday, calling for leadership from the Jerusalemite community. “Where is the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas? Where is Salam Fayyad? Where are the members of the executive committee? ” asked the letter, and wondered, “do they just come to Jerusalem to meet with Olmert and Livni? ” rather than to pray or lead the Palestinian people? The PLC members, writing from the Ayalon prison near Ramle in central Israel, said more leadership for Jerusalem and Jersalemites would be a positive influence in the strengthening of Arab-Islamic relations with Palestinian leaders. “Our nation faces many troubles,” continued the statement, “while Palestinians wait at the checkpoints to reach Jerusalem our leaders. . . Hamas warns Israel over Schalit deal Jerusalem Post 9/20/2008 Hamas would reject every existing agreement on a prisoner trade for kidnapped soldier Gilad Schalit if Israel tried to change the terms of the deal, senior Hamas leader in Gaza Mahmoud Al-Zahar has threatened. Zahar, who made his comments during an interview with the Ramatan news agency on Friday evening, insisted that if Israel continued what he called its policy of withdrawing from arrangements, Hamas would cancel all of the arrangements made and would demand a new number as well as a new list of prisoners’ names the group wished to release. "In this case, we will also go back on our word. . . We will open a new page, begin anew and demand greater numbers," Zahar warned. Zahar’s declaration came in response to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s announcement that Israel has already agreed to free 450 Palestinian prisoners before Schalit is transferred. . . IOA releases former minister Abu Arafa after 27 months in jail Palestinian Information Center 9/17/2008 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM- The IOA released at noon Tuesday Khaled Abu Arafa, the former minister for Jerusalem in the tenth PA government, after spending 27 months in the Israeli Eshel prison in Beer Sheba. Lawyer Fadi Al-Qawasmi stated that the Israeli military prosecution decided to cancel two indictments filed against Abu Arafa after it failed during two years to prove anything against him. Qawasmi added that the only charge that was proved against Abu Arafa was serving as minister for three months in the Palestinian government formed by the Hamas change and reform parliamentary bloc, adding that after two years of follow-up, he managed to refute all charges leveled against Abu Arafa. He opined that the kidnapping and prosecution of Abu Arafah were because of his active role in defense of Jerusalem at the social and political levels. 10 Palestinian children suffer food poisoning in Israeli prison Palestinian Information Center 9/18/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The Mandela institute for human rights and political prisoners reported that 10 Palestinian minors imprisoned in the Israeli Telmond prison have suffered food poisoning after they were served sardine meals. In a report issued following a field visit to the prison, the institute said that cases of poisoning happened among children in section 14, adding that the prison administration transferred 15 of them to the internal clinic where it was discovered that 10 minors had severe food poisoning. In another development, Palestinian prisoner Ra’ed Drabiya told the lawyer of the prisoner club who visited him that the Israeli doctors inside the prison treat him like a "guinea pig". Drabiya explained that he is suffering from a disease in his back and the prison doctors failed to diagnose it, pointing that he underwent three surgeries but to no avail. Israeli occupation renews administrative detention of Hamas spokesman Palestinian Information Center 9/19/2008 JENIN, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authorities have renewed on Thursday the administrative detention of Hamas spokesman in Jenin sheikh Khaled al-Haj ten minutes before he was due to be released. The family of Haj say that the administration of the Negev desert prison, where their son is languishing after being moved between several prisons, handed him the detention renewal notice extending his administrative detention by 4 more months minutes before his due release, this renewal is the fourth in a row. The Occupation authorities extended the administrative detention of Haj despite the fact that there are no charges levelled against him. The Israel high court rejected a request by his lawyer that Haj be released. IOF troops kidnapped Haj from his home in Jenin on 11 January 2007 and subjected him to 70 days of harsh interrogation, then given 11 months prison sentence and 2000 Shekels on charges of owning a pistol. IOF tight measures on visits to captives increase during Ramadan Palestinian Information Center 9/19/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Relatives of the Palestinian captives in Israeli jails have complained that the IOF troops were humiliating them before they could be allowed to see their relatives in the Israeli jail in flagrant violation to human rights conventions and prisoners’ rights. They added that the IOF troops were deliberately delaying them for several hours under the heat of the sun, especially during the month of Ramadan knowing that they are fasting. "The Israeli occupation imposes on us many restrictions, which are not as alleged by the occupation for security reason, but merely to humiliate and to increase the burden on the captives’ relatives", said a sister of Palestinian captive Khaled Mohammed of Nablus city. The 55 year-old mother of Palestinian captive Hassan Al-Masri, who is detained in the Negev desert prison, pointed out that the IOF troops forced her to wait for long hours in a very hot hall before they allowed her to see her son. Detention of Qalqiliya journalist by PA security called violation of judicial independence Ma’an News Agency 9/15/2008 Bethlehem – Ma’an – Palestinian Journalist and civilian Mustafa Sabri has been denied release from a military prison despite a court order for his release after he was detained as a political prisoner by Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces in on 31 July. Sabri is a journalist for Al-Aqsa TV, and was picked up in a series of politically motivated arrests throughout the West Bank by the PA. A corresponding series of political arrests were made in Gaza by de facto government forces. The arrests came days after the 25 July car bombing in which four Hamas activists were killed and one young girl. The arrests continued throughout the summer, and by some accounts are ongoing. Political arrests have been a major issue in unity talks, with all sides calling for the release of those arrested. PCHR are calling Sabri’s detention a “violation of the powers and independence of. . . Ad-Dameer Association demands Abbas to release a detained Palestinian reporter IMEMC News, International Middle East Media Center News 9/15/2008 The Ad-Dameer Prisoners Support and Human Rights Association demanded the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas to issue direct orders for the release of reporter Mustafa Sabri who was detained by Palestinian security forces on July 31. Sabri remains imprisoned although the Palestinian High Court of Justice ordered his unconditional release. The Ad-Dameer added that Sabri was repeatedly detained and interrogated over the last several months by the security forces in Qalqilia, in the northern part of the West Bank,The association also said that Sabri declared a hunger strike in protest to his continued detention in spite of the decision of the high court. It stated that all sorts of political arrests, and assaults against public freedom and the freedom of press are illegal, and added that Abbas must act in order to stop these violations. News in Brief - Barak applauds criminal investigation of New Profile Ha’aretz 9/16/2008 Defense Minister Ehud Barak yesterday applauded Attorney General Menachem Mazuz’s decision to order a criminal investigation into an organization suspected of encouraging draft dodging. The New Profile organization gives recruits "detailed and reliable information about the procedures that enable one to obtain an exemption from military service," according to its web site. Barak met yesterday with the heads of several pre-army preparatory programs. "Army service is a pillar of Israeli society," he said. (Yuval Azoulay) A Jerusalem court yesterday sentenced a man to three years in prison and one year suspended sentence for throwing a flare onto a basketball court last year and causing physical injury to a security guard. The court also ordered the defendant, Yossi Malach, to pay NIS 150,000 in compensation to the guard, Yoav Glizentein, who lost two fingers when he picked up the flare, which exploded in his hand. Israeli soldier gets 14 days for role in stillborn at checkpoint Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 9/13/2008 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: An Israeli soldier was sentenced to 14 days in prison for his role in an incident in which a Palestinian delivered a stillborn baby after being forced to wait at a checkpoint inside the Occupied West Bank, the Israeli Army said Friday. "The incident is one that could have been prevented," the Israeli military said, adding that the squad commander who was in charge of the checkpoint at the time was removed from his position and sentenced to 14 days in jail. Nahil Abu Raja was heading from her village to hospital in Nablus with her relatives earlier this month when she was held up at an Israeli checkpoint outside the Occupied West Bank city while she was in labor. "The soldiers at the checkpoint did not allow the vehicle to enter Nablus via the checkpoint as they did not possess a vehicular entrance permit," the army said in a statement. Three minors among nine seized in Ni’lin Ma’an News Agency 9/11/2008 Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli forces reportedly seized nine Palestinians near Ramallah on Thursday. Eight of the six men and three children lived in the village of Ni’lin, west of the city. One other detainee is from Ramallah. All were taken for investigation, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources. Witnesses said Israeli forces took two of the minors when they could not locate those they intended to arrest. The father of Mohammed Salah Khawaje, 12, told reporters that Israeli soldiers used the boy as a human shield against rocks thrown by Palestinian youths. The two other minors seized in the raid are Mohammed Loi Khawaje, 13, and Sofian Nawaf Khawaje, 17. Israeli forces also took Arafat Amira, Imad Azzam Khawaje, 18, Mustafa Khawaje, 20, Milhim Amira, 22, Yousef Amira, 34 and Salah Mira, 36. IDF court jails soldier who didn’t let woman in labor through crossing Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 9/12/2008 Military court on Thursday sentenced the IDF commander of the Hawara Crossing to 14 days in prison and dismissed him from military service following his involvement in an incident in which a Palestinian woman was delayed at the IDF checkpoint and consequently, gave birth to a dead baby. The woman was on her way to a Nablus hospital last Thursday after having contractions. According to her husband, even when the baby’s head was crowning, the soldiers at the crossing north of Jerusalem did not let the couple through. The Palestinian ambulance team that arrived at the scene could not save the newborn. [end] PA military prosecution refuses court decision to release journalist Sabri Palestinian Information Center 9/11/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The PA military prosecutor rejected the decision taken by the higher Palestinian court to release journalist Mustafa Sabri who has been detained in the PA intelligence jails for 84 days in Qalqilya and decided to keep him in prison until further notice. The PA security apparatuses had summoned Sabri nine times over the past months, where he was sometimes detained or released. He was elected to membership in the Qalqilya municipality after spending several years in Israeli jails because of his national orientations. His family reported that Sabri was arrested in 26/7/2008 and exposed to extreme torture, but after his release he published a story about what happened to him and was arrested again during the same month on a charge of disturbing public order through his news reports. In a new development, informed Palestinian sources told the PIC reporter that the. . . Electrical fire breaks out in PA prison in Jericho Ma’an News Agency 9/11/2008 Jericho – Ma’an – A fire broke out in a prison operated by the Palestinian Intelligence service in the West Bank city of Jericho on Wednesday night, causing no injuries. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an that the fire resulted from a faulty electrical connection. Twelve Palestinians are held at the Jericho facility. The men are serving temporary sentences in Palestinian Authority custody under an amnesty agreement for Palestinian armed activists. [end] Administrative detention extended for Hamas leaders from Tulkarem Ma’an News Agency 9/9/2008 Tulkarem – Ma’an – The Israeli prison service has extended the administrative detention of several of Hamas leaders and activists from the Tulkarem area of the northern West Bank. Hamas sources told Ma’an that Sheikh Abdullah Yaseen, the Hamas spokesperson in Tulkarem, and another member named Samih Qarut were remanded for six more months, following siz months of detention without trial. Local Hamas leader Muhammad Abu Al-Kheir was designated for a further five months, his fifth consecutive administrative detention order. Israel detained 15 Hamas leaders in Tulkarem on 8 May 2007. [end] Long-term Palestinian political prisoners on the rise PNN, Palestine News Network 9/9/2008 Gaza -- The number of years behind Israeli bars for dozens of Palestinian political prisoners has surpassed 15. Na’el Barghouti is the longest standing after being imprisoned on 4 April 1978. There are 340 Arabs who have been held in Israeli prisons since before the Oslo Accords, the agreement which directed Israel to release political prisoners. Abdel Nasser Farawana is a researcher and the Director of Palestine behind Bars. He said on Tuesday that a large number of Palestinians have joined the ranks of those imprisoned since before Oslo. Two hundred and ninety Palestinians have been in Israeli prison for more than 15 years. Eighty-one are still imprisoned after 20 years. Eight Palestinians join the ranks this month. Four of them are from the West Bank: Ashraf Ghazi Al Wadi from Tulkarem detained since 11 September 1993, Mohammad Mousa Tkatgah from Bethlehem detained. . . Palestinian prisoner ’jumped to escape torture’ Associated Press, YNetNews 9/8/2008 Abdel Karin plunges from second-story window of Nablus prison 15 days after being arrested by Palestinian security. ’I began to prefer death,’ he says -A Palestinian prisoner says he jumped from a second floor window to escape torture at the hands of his Palestinian jailers. Prison officials say he fell. The prisoner is 34-year-old Mohammed Abdel Karim. He’s being treated in an east Jerusalem hospital for back injuries from his plunge. The Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq says the case is an example of widespread abuse of prisoners in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Abdel Karin plunged from the second-story window 15 days after he was arrested by Palestinian security and taken to a prison in the West Bank city of Nablus. He said every day he was tied up in painful positions every day. Gaza female prisoners in Israeli jails appeal for allowing family visits Palestinian Information Center 9/8/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Gaza female prisoners in the Israeli occupation jails have appealed to the concerned institutions to pressure the Israeli occupation authority to allow family visits to them similar to West Bank prisoners. Prisoner Fatema Al-Zak told the Palestinian prisoner’s club lawyer that she was psychologically depressed because of inability to see her offspring and relatives. She asked the lawyer to appeal for her case. She said that her child Yousef could not see his father, brothers and relatives ever since his birth in captivity. The 8-month-old Yousef is the youngest prisoner. Two other prisoners, Wafa Al-Bis and Rawda Habib, also from the Gaza Strip, voiced similar appeals during the meeting with the same lawyer. In another context, Ahmed Al-Kurd, the minister of labor and social affairs in the PA caretaker government, said that 150,000 Palestinian families in. . . Mandela calls for the release of Palestinian researcher Palestinian Information Center 9/6/2008 JENIN, (PIC)-- The Mandela institute catering for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli occupation authority jails on Saturday asked the human and legal rights groups to pressure the IOA to release Ibrahim Abul Haija, the Palestinian researcher and writer. A statement by lawyer Buthaina Dakmak, the institute’s chairperson, charged that Abu Al-Haija’s administrative detention, without trial or charge, was in continuation of the IOA’s war on freedom of opinion and expression. She recalled that the IOA detained Abul Haija, who is well known political analyst, from his home in Jenin six months ago and sentenced him to administrative custody for six months. He was not interrogated or charged during his detention, the lawyer noted, adding that the court of appeals refused to release him at the pretext of "secret evidence" against him. Saturday report: Israeli authorities deliberately mistreat Palestinians during prison transport PNN, Palestine News Network 9/6/2008 Gaza -- A report issued by the Palestinian Ministry of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Saturday indicates that torturous conditions are the norm during transport. "Prisoners are waiting in trucks for over five hours without food, water or ventilation in the summer, and without heat during the winter. The ill suffer even more as they are chained in twos. " The Ministry writes that "Israeli prison authorities deliberately exercise various forms of maltreatment and torture against Palestinian prisoners in order to pressure them and weaken their morale while being transported. "Today’s report is focusing on transport between prisons and to and from court or the hospital. "The prison administration will not inform the imprisoned of the transfer to a new location until the night before so there is not adequate time for him to prepare himself. Abbas’s security men toss prisoner from third floor breaking his spine Palestinian Information Center 9/5/2008 RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Muhammad Samir Abdel-Karim, from the northern West Bank city of Nablus who was imprisoned by the PA Security at Junaid has a broken spine and is in critical condition. According to a PIC special source, the PA security arrested Abdel-Karim secretly 15 days ago. After subjecting him to torture for several days, Abdel-Karim was thrown from the prison’s third floor causing him a fractured spine. The source said that the torture included tying up hands and feet together from behind for a week and breaking his teeth. The same sources said that the PA security, who are trying their best to keep the story out of the press, transferred the prisoner to the French hospital in Jerusalem four days ago. Palestinian parliament speaker moved from one Israeli prison to another Ma’an News Agency 9/4/2008 Hebron – Ma’an – The speaker of the Palestinian parliament, Aziz Dweik, has been moved from one Israeli prison to another, one of Dweik’s colleagues in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) said on Thursday. PLCmember Samira Halaykah Dweik said he was moved from Megiddo prison to Hadareim prison. Another lawmaker, Samir Al-Qadi, was moved from Ofer prison to Megiddo. Halaykah said that the Israeli prison service is abusing Dweik and the other 40 members of the PLC who are still in prison. According to Halaykah, even the transportation between prison facilities can become a means of torture, and a month ago, four lawmakers were injured while in transit between prisons. Liberated prisoner: Jailors tried to push me to commit suicide Palestinian Information Center 9/4/2008 AL-KHALIL, (PIC)-- The Liberated prisoner Noura Al-Hashlamon said on Thursday that the Israeli jailors had tried to push her to commit suicide while in administrative captivity over the past two years. She told the PIC reporter in Al-Khalil city that Israeli jailors dropped broken glass in her prison cell during her hunger strike and when she asked them to get them out they refused. Hashlamon said she told court that she does not intend to commit suicide and that she is a believer and that her hunger strike was to protest the so-called secret file against her which was used to renew her administrative detention. The ex-detainee said that her husband was also held under administrative custody for the past 26 months without trial or charge, leaving their seven children without their parents. She recalled that she went on two hunger strikes, the first for 26 days and the second. . . Prisoners’ Ministry in Gaza: Israel detained 3,900 Palestinians so far this year Ma’an News Agency 9/3/2008 Gaza – Ma’an – The Israeli forces carried out more than 250 raids in the West Bank during July, and detained more than 420 Palestinians, including children and members of local government councils, statistics released by the Ministry of Prisoners’ Affairs in Gaza show. According to the ministry, Israel has detained 3,900 Palestinians so far this year. Forty children under the age of 18 were detained during August. Nine hundred prisoners from the Gaza Strip have been denied the right to family visits for more than 15 months on the pretext that Israel will not coordinate the visits with the de facto government in Gaza. The International Committee of the Red Cross normally facilitates such visits. Forty one members of the Palestinian Legislative Council are still in Israeli prisons. Prison conditions deteriorate PNN, Palestine News Network 9/3/2008 Nablus -- Solitary confinement and the use of military dogs in Israeli prisons were prevalent in Israeli prisons during the month of August. Raids and arbitrary punishments both work to crush spirits and deprive Palestinians of the most basic of rights, the Prisoner Support Society wrote in the latest report. Abdullah Barghouthi is serving a life sentence. Prison guards at Askelon beat severely during a random attack. Bruises now cover his body, his muscles are torn and he is in solitary confinement. A 36 year old woman from Askar Refugee Camp in Nablus revealed that she suffered cancer in her uterus, finding out from a medical exam inside the prison. Megiddo Prison within the boundaries of northern Israel is holding 850 Palestinians. The report states that they suffer from a shortage of drinking water as part of the Prison Administration’s policy. Rights group: Gazan man held in 'secret location' since Hamas-Fatah shootout in early August Ma’an News Agency 9/3/2008 Gaza – Ma’an – The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights (PICCR) said on Wednesday that de facto government security forces in Gaza have been detaining Zaki As-Sakani without disclosing his location or allowing him to see a lawyer. Thirty-Three-year-old As-Sakani has been held since 2 August. According to his family, As-Sakani was detained after he was wounded in fighting in the Ash-Shuja’iyyah neighborhood of Gaza City. Hamas-allied security forces fought a battle with Fatah-linked gunmen that day, leaving nine Palestinians dead. The de facto government in Gaza previously claimed to have released all detainees jailed during the events in Ash-Shuja’iyyah. As-Sakani was reportedly taken to the intensive care unit at Ash-Shifa Hospital. His mother tried to visit him at hospital, but she was not allowed to go enter the ICU. Israeli court lenient on soldiers who abused Palestinian Taxi dispatcher Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 9/2/2008 The Jaffa Israeli Military Court handed down lenient rulings against Israeli soldiers who attacked a Palestinian Taxi-dispatcher in the southern West Bank city of Hebron in January 2008. The soldiers were indicted on charges of severely abusing the Palestinian man, forcing him to strip naked, and assaulting him with rifles until he lost consciousness. The taxi dispatcher was identified as Ziad Abu Sneina. He was ordered to fully undress, yet in refusing to remove all of his clothes, the soldiers kicked, punched, and hit him with their rifles. The Israeli army totally rejected the allegations and claimed that soldiers tried to subdue the man after he became "uncontrollable. " ť The court ruled that three soldiers of the Kfir Brigade will receive active prison terms ranging between 67 days and five and a half months. Border Guard officer convicted of kidnapping, manslaughter Aviad Glickman, YNetNews 9/2/2008 Jerusalem District Court finds fourth officer involved in 2002 kidnapping of 17-year-old Palestinian youth guilty. Policeman who filmed incident convicted of same offenses -The Jerusalem District Court on Tuesday found Border Guard officer Shahar Botabicka guilty of the abduction and manslaughter of a Palestinian youth. Botabicka and three other Border Guard officers were involved in the 2002 kidnapping of a Palestinian teenager, during their service in the West Bank city of Hebron. The incident was caught on tape by Border Guard officer Denis Alhazov, who was also found guilty of abduction and manslaughter. Officers Yanai Lalza and Bassam Wahabee were also convicted for their involvement in the incidents, with the court sentencing Lalza to six and a half months in prison and Wahabee to four and a half years. Female detainee released from administrative detention Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 9/1/2008 Researcher and specialist in detainees’ affairs, Abdul-Nasser Farawna, stated on Monday that the Israeli Authorities released detainee Nora Al Hashlamoon, 37, after nearly two years imprisonment under administrative detention orders without filing any charges against her. Al Hashlamoon, from the southern West Bank City of Hebron, was kidnapped on September 14, 2006 and was imprisoned under administrative detention orders which were renewed for nine consecutive times. She is a mother of six children and her husband Mohammad is still imprisoned under administrative detention orders since September 2006. Farwana stated that Al Hashlamoon was repeatedly asked to choose between remaining under administrative detention or be deported o Jordan along with her children for three years. She refused to be deported and carried repeated hunger strikes. Palestinian woman released from Israeli custody after 27 day hunger strike Ma’an News Agency 9/1/2008 Hebron – Ma’an – Israeli forces evening released 37-year-old Noura Al-Hashlamoun from Israeli custody after serving 26 months in prison. Hashlamoun was detained on 19 June 2006 and was under administrative detention without trials or charges. She went on hunger strike for 27 days as a protest for her illegal detention, and ended the strike only after prison authorities announced her release. In early 2008 the Israeli Supreme court issued a deportation order for Hashlamoun, who was ordered sent to Jordan along with her husband and six children, aged three to 14. Hashlamoun’s husband Muhammad has been detained since September 2006 accused of affiliation with Islamic Jihad. Al Akhras to PNN: new organization to aid Palestinians upon release from Israeli prison Palestine News Network 9/1/2008 Bethlehem -- When Palestinians are released from Israeli prisons their cases often get dropped by local services specializing in prisoner rights. There are approximately 11,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons, taking all of the time and more than prisoner rights groups have. Iman Al Akhras is the director of new Bethlehem organization established to deal with follow-up after release. She told PNN on Monday that Bethlehem is teeming with Palestinians released from Israeli prisons and it is crucial that they receive aid. The Freed Prisoner Assembly does not have a formal office, but is instead working out of the offices of other institutions dealing with prisoner rights. She said today, "We aim to assist all organizations and associations dealing with prisoners. Our objective in establishing this new organization is to assist prisoners in all material respects. ’Lenient’ sentences for troops who assaulted Palestinian Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 9/1/2008 Soldiers convicted of beating taxi dispatcher in Hebron sentenced to active prison terms of less than six months after military court partially rejects victim’s contradictory testimony - The Jaffa Military Court sentenced three soldiers from the Kfir Brigade to active prison terms ranging between 67 days and five and a half months after finding them guilty of assaulting a Palestinian man in the city of Hebron. Though the prosecution put forward a grave indictment against the troops, the court only convicted them on a small number of the charges brought against them. Two of the soldiers are expected to finish serving their sentences in the coming days, as they had been in detention for the duration of the court proceedings - more than four and a half months. The third soldier, who was sentenced to 67 days jail time, will not return to prison, as he has already served out his sentence.  Articles
Gaza’s Only Growth Industry Nadia W. Awad, MIFTAH 9/29/2008 After Hamas defeated Fatah in the ’Battle for Gaza’ in June 2007, the Hamas-led government became solely responsible for the Gaza Strip. Israel, the US and the rest of the international community refused to deal with them and embarked on a form of collective punishment, imposing an economic and political blockade on the Strip. These blockades have plummeted the people of Gaza into a humanitarian disaster of gigantic proportions. When people such as Lauren Booth (sister-in-law of former British PM Tony Blair) call Gaza the world’s largest concentration camp, or the world’s largest open-air prison, they are not exaggerating. More than 1.4 million Palestinians are surrounded by Israeli soldiers on one side, Egyptian soldiers on another, with the sea visibly taunting them with its apparent openness. Of course, it is not open. Israel’s navy blockades Gaza from that side as well. Goods are not allowed across Gaza’s borders in either direction. Even essential items such as medical equipment are prohibited, while only some humanitarian assistance is allowed in. Israel tends to summarily switch off water and power to thousands, as well as prevent fuel deliveries from entering Gaza. Hence, Gazans truly live at the mercy of Israel. Yet despite these tribulations which would normally destroy one’s will to live, Gazans have found a way of venting the economic blockade imposed on them. Allow me to introduce you to Gaza’s only growth industry: the tunnel trade. Remembering Edward Said Five Years On Stephen Lendman – Chicago, Palestine Chronicle 9/22/2008 Edward Said. ’He stood for everything that is virtuous.’ Said was passionately against Palestine being turned into an isolated prison wherein Israel repeatedly attacked mostly defenseless civilians with tanks and F-16s.Born in West Jerusalem in 1935. Exiled in December 1947. Said was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia in 1991, a malignant cancer of the bone marrow and blood. At 6:45AM on September 25, 2003, he succumbed (at age 67) after a painful courageous 12 year struggle. Tributes followed and resumed a year later. In a testimony to his teacher, Professor Moustafa Bayoumi called him "indefatigable, incorruptible, a humanist and devastatingly charming....leav(ing behind) legions of followers and fans in every corner of the world. I am lost without him....I miss him so." Chomsky called his death an "incalculable loss." A year later, Ilan Pappe said "his absence seems to me still incomprehensible. What would have happened if we still had Edward with us in this last year....another terrible (one) for the values (he) represented and causes he defended." Tariq Ali referred to his "indomitable spirit as a fighter, his will to live, (my) long-standing friend and comrade," and described his ordeal. Rights group: 13 Palestinian children in administrative detention Press release, B'Tselem, Electronic Intifada 9/15/2008 According to B’Tselem’s figures, on 31 August 2008, Israel was holding 13 Palestinian minors, two of them girls, in prolonged administrative detention in Israel, in breach of law. At the end of June 2008, 730 Palestinians were being held in administrative detention in Israel. The two girls, Salwa Salah and Sarra Sirwah, both 17 years old, were detained on 5 June 2008 in the middle of the night and are being held in Damon Prison together with adult female prisoners. The detention orders against them were issued for four months, but can be extended an indefinite number of times for up to six months each time. Administrative detention is carried out solely on the basis of an administrative order, without a judicial determination, without an indictment being filed, and without a trial. Given that administrative detention infringes the right to freedom and due process, and in light of the clear danger of abuse, international law imposes rigid limitations in its use. Over the years, Israel has detained Palestinians for long periods of time without bringing them to court or even telling them of the suspicions against them. When detainees appeal their detention, neither they nor their attorneys are allowed to see the allegedly incriminating evidence. By acting in this way, Israel shows utter disregard for defenses available to suspects in Israeli and international law, which are intended to ensure the right to liberty and due process, the right of persons to state their case, and the presumption of innocence. Prisoner Release Yet another Propaganda Tactic Akram Salhab, MIFTAH 9/11/2008 As the bus of 199 prisoners (a number oddly short of 200) pulled into Ramallah recently, many will have seen the images of crying mothers and waving Palestinian flags as yet another indication of Israel’s willingness to take risks for peace. Newspapers were filled with op-eds praising Israel for its bravery and courage while the usual international voices hailed it as a step in the right direction. Much less coverage was given to the 1,751 Palestinians who have been arrested since the last busload of prisoners was released last November. Many of these prisoners were taken from their homes in the night and held without trial for months on end. For those lucky enough to face trial, they are subject to trial by a military court, which does not meet international standards, and are often convicted on secret evidence. It is fairly obvious, given the increase in the number of prisoners and the unjust conditions in which they are held, that Israel’s latest prisoner release has little to do with a change in policy. Still struggling Khaled Amayreh, Al-Ahram Weekly 9/11/2008 Normally, the holy month of Ramadan, which in most Muslim countries began on 1 September, is a joyful season of charity, prayers and especially exquisite meals at the end of each day. However, for the majority of Palestinian families, hit hard by rampant unemployment and worsening poverty, this year’s Ramadan represents a real challenge to their meagre budgets. Moreover, the enduring rift between Fatah and Hamas, which has become particularly ugly manifestations, is also casting a dark shadow on Palestine. Many had hoped the advent of Ramadan would prompt the rival governments in the West Bank and Gaza to start over, as it were, and to free the hundreds of political prisoners each side is holding. However, far from this, the two parties’ security apparatuses, and especially Fatah’s, continued to round up alleged suspects by the dozens, in many cases subjecting them to physical and psychological mistreatment. The politically-motivated detentions, coupled with the worse plight of more than 10,000 Palestinian families whose sons and relatives are languishing in Israeli jails and detention centres, are undoubtedly leaving a depressing mark, especially during Iftar time, when families get together for the sunset meal to break the day’s fast. Growing Up Occupied in Gaza Ahmad Abed, MIFTAH 9/11/2008 It was a very sudden moment when I realized that I was no longer a child. Occupation, intifada, Israel, enemy, Zionists, curfew, revolution, all these words were repeatedly spoken everywhere and I was very confused trying to understand what they all meant. No place to play or to meet my friends, no freedom. I could no longer go to the fields to pick oranges and grapes and have barbecues with my family and our friends’ families and I was forbidden from going to the sea after 7pm. It was a long list of restrictions that killed my childhood in one moment. Coping with all these dramatic and sudden changes was never easy. When someone misses a dear friend or a loved one it takes him or her a long time to recover, but when one loses one’s childhood suddenly and without notice, one can never recover. "The intifada started, we have to sacrifice to get back our stolen freedom and end occupation," my father told me. I was eight years old, the days became too long and the nights were very heavy and even longer. I felt that there would be no mornings. I was terrified, anxious and expecting the occupation to come at any time to raid and destroy our beautiful house, like they had already done to our neighbors when they arrested the father and his oldest son. I was too scared to look from my window to see how close they were. I learned to resist my curiosity as a child. I learned also to cope with the new safety regulations and to stay in my little room, in our house, in our city, or in other words in my cell in the big prison that is Gaza. In praise of prisoner releases Yossi Alpher, Jerusalem Post 9/9/2008 The recent release of 198 Palestinian prisoners, many of them convicted of serious terrorist offenses - including two who were directly involved in the murder of Israelis prior to the Oslo Accords of 1993 - was a smart and courageous move by the otherwise highly problematic Olmert government. If it introduces some logic into criteria for future prisoner release, it could have a positive strategic effect beyond its immediate confidence-building impact on Israeli-Palestinian relations. Israeli military and civilian courts tend to sentence Arab terrorists and their accomplices to periods of incarceration that often far exceed the sentences meted out to Israelis for similar ’civilian’ offenses. A succession of governments has long been caught up in a terrorist-prisoner syndrome that combines draconian sentences as strong deterrent punishment with a refusal to use prisoner releases as confidence building gestures toward the Palestinian public and government. Another fig leaf for deception Hasan Abu Nimah, Electronic Intifada 9/4/2008 Last Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, the last encounter planned before the former leaves office. Olmert rebuked Abbas for meeting with Samir Kuntar who Israel recently released to Lebanon during a prisoner exchange with Hizballah. "You are not a man of terror and I don’t expect you to meet with such a despicable killer," Olmert told Abbas who could offer no better defense than to say that the meeting was unplanned and that Kuntar had in fact invited himself. Abbas’ implied agreement prompted Olmert to insist "that it was still possible for the Palestinian leader not to have met with Kuntar," and the conversation had ended there as reported in the Israeli daily Haaretz. Kuntar was indeed convicted of killing three Israelis in 1979, and therefore he is, in Israeli eyes, a "despicable killer." But he was at the time fighting on the side of a Palestinian revolution of which Abbas was a founder and a leader. One wonders, therefore, if Abbas, while struggling before Olmert to hide his embarrassment from his blunder of meeting Kuntar, could not think of that, or of the many thousands of Palestinians who were butchered since 1979, and before, by Israelis whom he, Abbas, has been repeatedly meeting, entertaining, hugging and kissing. Hard bargaining Khaled Amayreh, Al-Ahram Weekly 9/4/2008 Hamas is holding fast in the Shalit affair, to the chagrin of Israel, under pressure to see its soldier freed. Reacting to Israeli "dithering and procrastination", Hamas has decided to up the ante as to the price Israel has to pay in order to secure the release of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier Palestinian fighters captured during a cross-border attack in the Gaza Strip more than two years ago. Hamas officials in Gaza said this week the group was now demanding the release of 1,500 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and detention centres in exchange for freeing Shalit. The new demands by Hamas, that Israel dismisses as a "bargaining tactic", was conveyed by Egyptian officials to Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak who visited Cairo last week. Barak said the Israeli government was making strenuous efforts to get Shalit released as soon as possible, adding that he expected indirect negotiations with Hamas in this regard to be accelerated. Barak also suggested that Egyptian-mediated negotiations be conducted in secret to ensure a successful outcome. Palestinian Village Faces Army Reign of Terror Jonathan Cook, Middle East Online 9/3/2008 The window through which Salam Amira, 16, filmed the moment when an Israeli soldier shot from close range a handcuffed and blindfolded Palestinian detainee has a large hole at its centre with cracks running in every direction. “Since my video was shown, the soldiers shoot at our house all the time,” she said. The shattered and cracked windows at the front of the building confirm her story. “When we leave the windows open, they fire tear gas inside too.” Her home looks out over the Israeli road block guarding the only entrance to the village of Nilin, located just inside the West Bank midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It was here that a bound Ashraf Abu Rahma, 27, was shot in the foot in July with a rubber bullet under orders from an Israeli regiment commander. The treatment of the family stands in stark contrast to the leniency shown to the soldier and his commander involved in that incident. B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights group, has accused the Israeli army of seeking “revenge” for the girl’s role in exposing the actions of its armed forces in the West Bank. The Evolving Facts of Life Yossi Alpher, MIFTAH 9/2/2008 A brief perusal of headlines in the regional media would appear to confirm that, of the two main Palestinian movements, Fateh and Hamas, the latter has recently been the object of the most attention from Israel’s neighbors, particularly Egypt and Jordan. To be sure, Palestinian Authority/Fateh leader Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) periodically makes the rounds of regional capitals to update leaders about the peace process with Israel. And in Cairo, Riyadh, Doha and Sanaa he discusses possible mediation for renewed unity talks with Hamas. No one refuses to see him and he is treated with respect. But then nothing happens. On the other hand, Jordan recently renewed its relations with Hamas after nearly a decade of alienation and despite its charges of out-and-out sedition against Hamas two years ago. And Egypt persists in mediating first ceasefire and then prisoner-exchange talks between Hamas and Israel. One is left with the impression that Arab recognition of PLO leadership of the Palestinian people is increasingly pro-forma and ritualistic. Nilin village continues to resist Israeli siege Jonathan Cook, Electronic Intifada 9/2/2008 The window through which Salam Amira, 16, filmed the moment when an Israeli soldier shot from close range a handcuffed and blindfolded Palestinian detainee has a large hole at its center with cracks running in every direction. "Since my video was shown, the soldiers shoot at our house all the time," she said. The shattered and cracked windows at the front of the building confirm her story. "When we leave the windows open, they fire tear gas inside too." Her home looks out over the Israeli road block guarding the only entrance to the village of Nilin, located just inside the West Bank midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It was here that a bound Ashraf Abu Rahma, 27, was shot in the foot in July with a rubber bullet under orders from an Israeli regiment commander. The treatment of the family stands in stark contrast to the leniency shown to the soldier and his commander involved in that incident. B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights group, has accused the Israeli army of seeking "revenge" for the girl’s role in exposing the actions of its armed forces in the West Bank. LinksAdalah Adalah (Justice in Arabic) is the first non-profit, non-sectarian Palestinian-run legal center in Israel. The main goal of Adalah’s work is to achieve equal rights and minority rights protections for Palestinian citizens of Israel. Addameer Prisoners’ Support and Human Rights Organization: Addameer (conscience) is a Palestinian non-governmental, civil institution which focuses on human rights issues. Supports Palestinian prisoners, advocates for rights of political prisoners, works to end torture. Amnesty International Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. AI’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. Amnesty International USA Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. AI’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. Arab Association for Human Rights - HRA The HRA was founded in 1988 to promote and protect the political, civil, economic, and cultural rights of the Palestinian Arab minority in Israel and to further the domestic implementation of international human rights principles. It is an independent non-governmental organisation registered in Israel. Association for Civil Rights in Israel - ACRI In Hebrew - The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) was founded in 1972 as a non-political and independent body, with the goal of protecting human and civil rights in Israel and in the territories under Israeli control. B’tselem The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. It endeavors to document and educate the Israeli public and policymakers about human rights violations in the Occupied Territories, combat the phenomenon of denial prevalent among the Israeli public, and help create a human rights culture in Israel. Boycott Israeli Medical Association UK: The Medical Committee for Boycott of the Israeli Medical Association (IMA) will document the systematic torture of Palestinian people by agents of Israel. It will publicise the practice in order to bring world opinion to bear on Israel. And it will challenge the Israeli Medical Association which has repeatedly failed to issue advice to doctors who are involved in any way with torture. Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch is an independent, nongovernmental organization, supported by contributions from private individuals and foundations worldwide. Human Rights Watch is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world. Palestinian Center for Human Rights The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) is an independent legal body based in Gaza City dedicated to protecting human rights, promoting the rule of law, and upholding democratic principles in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Palestinian Prisoners Society The Palestinian Prisoner Society is a social and human institution and its members are prisoners inside prisons and released prisoners. Membership is open to every Palestinian prisoner inside and outside prisons who meets the conditions of membership. Physicians for Human Rights - Israel Physicians for Human Rights - Israel (PHR-Israel) was established in 1988 as a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, dedicated to promoting and protecting the medical human rights of all residents of Israel and the Occupied Territories. Public Committee Against Torture in Israel - PCATI An independent human rights organization founded that monitors the implementation conditions in detention centers and continues the struggle against the use of torture in interrogation in Israel and the Palestinian Authority. United Nations Information System on the Question of Palestine The main collection contains the texts of current and historical United Nations material concerning the question of Palestine and other issues related to the Middle East situation and the search for peace. World Organisation Against Torture OMCT is today the largest international coalition of NGOs fighting against torture,summary executions, forced disappearances and all other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment in order to preserve Human Rights. It has at its disposal a network, SOS Torture, consisting of some 240 non-governmental organisations which act as sources of information.
The Treatment of Prisoners and Detainees: Home page
To receive
a once-daily e-mail digest of our News and Articles content, write
to Disclaimer: The views expressed in the material posted on this site are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the webmaster or Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel. FAIR USE NOTICE: This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
