Tag: Jerusalem - Page 8 - International Solidarity Movement

Petition to free Shadi Farah

20th July 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, East Jerusalem | East Jerusalem, occupied Palestine

ISM encourages everyone to copy and paste the letter below and send it to your Members of Parliament, Congresspeople, and other political representatives.

To support Shadi and his family financially during this very difficult time, please see: https://palsolidarity.org/donate/

Dear Sir/Madame:

I am writing to urge you to act and condemn the violations on children’s rights that are being enforced by the Israeli government against Palestinians. I am extremely concerned about the situation in Palestine, where children are repeatedly arrested, abused and imprisoned by the Israeli forces.

At the moment, the youngest Palestinian child who is being detained in Israel is 12 year old Shadi Farah. He has spent more than six months away from his family already, and the court keeps prolonging his case and the final decision. Evidence against Shadi is very poor. He is accused of attempted manslaughter – allegedly he carried a knife with the intend to stab an Israeli soldier, yet no one was ever hurt by his hand. His interrogation was inhumane and abusive, it lasted for days and neither his parents or lawyer were present.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was ratified by the Israeli government in 1991. Thereby the Israeli government committed to providing all children with a safe childhood, with the care, protection and opportunities that are needed to ensure that childhood is a time free from insecurity, violence or abuse.

This commitment is not being fulfilled by the Israeli government. At the moment, more than 400 Palestinian children are being kept in Israeli prisons. Three-quarters of Palestinian children jailed between 2012 and 2015 endured some form of physical violence following arrest.

According to Defence for Children International Palestine, in 179 of 429 cases, the Israeli military arrested children from their homes in the middle of the night. In 378 out of 429 cases, Israeli forces arrested children without notifying parents of the reason for arrest or the location of detention. In 97 percent of the cases, children had no parent present during interrogation or access to legal counsel. Furthermore, Israeli police did not inform children of their rights in 84 percent of the cases. DCI Palestine informs that 66 children were held in solitary confinement, for an average period of 13 days, during the reporting period. More than 90 percent of children held in solitary confinement provided a confession. This confession is often being used as the only form of evidence to convict the child, as is the case with Shadi.

I beg you to express your concern about this in the Parliament/Congress/EU/UN and make sure that the grave issue of violations of Palestinian children’s rights is being brought to the attention of the Israeli government. Please remind Israel that by ratifying the UN Convention they are obliged to protect every child, in the state of Israel as well as in occupied Palestine. No child deserves the treatment that Palestinian children face every day.

Yours sincerely,

Shadi’s mother, holding a photo of her son.

Shadi with his best friend, Muhammad, and with his father, Anwar Farrah.

Shadi with his father, Anwar.

Call to Action: Support Shadi Farah, the youngest Palestinian Political Prisoner

20th July 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Quds team | Jerusalem, occupied Palestine

Shadi Farah is just 12 years old, but he’s caught in a trap that few adults ever manage to work their way out of. Last December, Shadi and his Friend Ahmad Zaatari, 13, were arrested at a bus stop in Jerusalem. A group of East Jerusalem illegal settlers called police to investigate the two boys, on suspicion of being Palestinian. In the ensuing process of arrest, interrogation, and abuse, the Israeli police proclaimed that the two boys had gone to Jerusalem with the intent to stab a soldier, and subsequently charged them both with attempted manslaughter. The evidence is slim, the boys confessed after several days of abusive questioning with no lawyer or parent present, and a lone witness was produced to claim the boys had been talking about stabbing soldiers at their school. According to Shadi’s family, he still maintains his innocence. But in the he-said-she-said world of Israeli courts, any evidence is enough to convict a Palestinian, and the boys are stuck.

Unlike most Palestinian Political Prisoners, Shadi and Ahmad’s case differs in a few ways. The boys have East Jerusalem IDs, meaning they are being tried in civilian courts, not military courts. While civilian courts are rarely kinder to accused Palestinians, there is more oversight than in the military system. That’s the good news. The bad news is that, as East Jerusalem residents under the age of 14, they are not imprisoned; they are in al Marsa youth detention centre in Northern Israel. While a youth detention centre may sound preferable, it isn’t.

“It would be better if he was in prison.” Said Shadi’s mother, Farehan Farah.

Al Marsa centre is a place for Israeli teenage criminals. The other detainees are older than Shadi and Ahmad, and are doing time for crimes such as theft, assault, and drug possession. Shadi’s family reports that the older detainees have threatened the boys on numerous occasions. The centre provides activities for all detainees; however Shadi and Ahmad have been banned from activities and are confined to their rooms, spending most of the day under what amounts to solitary confinement. The centre has not commented on whether this is a precaution to keep the boys safe from the older detainees, or if it is additional punishment. The living conditions in a prison might not be much better, but at least there the boys would be in the company of other Palestinians who are caught in the vicious political system, who could provide some amount of care and support.

In addition to being isolated within the centre, Shadi is also frequently isolated from his family. Al Marsa allows for weekly visits, however the cost and logistics pose a problem. Shadi’s parents don’t make very much money, and the cost of renting a car and paying for gas exceed 800 NIS ($213) per trip. While Shadi has a Jerusalem ID, his mother does not, which means she has to go through the laborious permit application process every time she wants to visit. If Shadi was in a prison, his family would be eligible to participate in the prisoner visitation program sponsored by the International Committee of the Red Cross. This would mean that all costs and permit application would be processed for them. Since he is not, the family receives no assistance for visitations. Farehan has only seen her young son a handful of times since he was arrested seven months ago.

To support Shadi and his family financially through this time and help bring him home, please click on the following link: https://palsolidarity.org/donate

Shadi’s family has hope that because of the flimsy evidence, and Shadi’s young age, he may yet be released from detention. Even if the family can’t have the charges dropped, they are trying to have him brought home and placed under house arrest for the duration of his trial, which could last for years. However it would take more than the effort of a court appointed lawyer. Supporters can contribute to the legal fees fund for the Farah family, or by writing to your congressional/parliamentary representatives, to insist they build pressure on Israel for their arbitrary detention of Palestinian children, especially 12-year-old Shadi Farah.

Shadi’s mother, holding a photo of her son

Shadi with his best friend, Muhammad, and with his father, Anwar Farrah.

Shadi with his father, Anwar.

Ramadan 2016: Harassment, collective punishment and settlement expansions in the occupied West Bank

7th July 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | West Bank, occupied Palestine

Monday the 6th of June marked the beginning of the Ramadan; the holiest holiday in Islam. The Ramadan is a sacred month in the Islamic calendar, where Muslims celebrate when the Qu’ran was revealed for the first time to the Prophet Muhammad.

For Muslims all over the world who celebrate the Ramadan, it’s a month of prayers and celebrations, with the intention to improve morality and character as well as strengthening ones relationship with Allah.

However, for Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank under illegal Israeli military occupation, the Ramadan is also a month filled with uncertainties and harassment.

Since the beginning of the Ramadan, more than 330 Palestinians have been detained throughout the West Bank; at least 60 of these were children, the youngest being 10-year old Marwan Sharabati from Al-Khalil (Hebron).

Discrimination and aggression in East Jerusalem

Israeli discrimination and aggression has especially been intense in and around occupied East Jerusalem, where thousands of Palestinians from in and outside East Jerusalem go to visit and pray at the Al-Aqsa compound and mosque, the third most religious site in all of Islam.

The Al-Aqsa compound in East Jerusalem was annexed in 1967 as a part of Israel’s illegal occupation of the West Bank – this annexation was never recognised by the international community.

On Sunday 26 of June, Israeli soldiers broke in and raided the Al-Aqsa Mosque, harassing and disturbing peaceful Palestinians during prayer. Israeli forces also escorted a group of approximately 200 settlers into the mosque, shouting and harassing Palestinians praying. This action was in contravention of a long running tradition that only Muslims would enter the mosque during the final 10 days of Ramadan.

Watch video of soldiers raiding the mosque here

As a result of the clashes, Israeli authorities enforced the understanding to restrict access to Muslim worshippers although also placed punitive restrictions on Palestinians; refusing access to all males under 45 years old, breaching their right to exercise freedom of religion.

On Friday 30 June, Israeli soldiers shut down the Qalandiya checkpoint, preventing thousands of Palestinians, including males younger than 45 years old, to pass in order to reach the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Israeli forces then proceeded to attack Palestinians at Qalandiya checkpoint with live ammunition, rubber coated steel bullets and teargas, wounding 40 Palestinians as well as killing a 63 year old Palestinian man due to massive teargas inhalation.

Watch video from Qalandiya here

Collective punishment and settlement expansion during the Ramadan

After an attack at a market in Tel Aviv, where four Israeli citizens where killed, Israel has conducted a large collective punishment strategy, suspending entry permits for more than 83,000 Palestinians from the West Bank. The 83,000 people impacted had nothing to do with the crime committed, and thereby preventing them from going to Al-Aqsa in the annexed East Jerusalem is another clear example of Israel enforcing illegal collective punishment.

To further ignite the situation, Benjamin Netanyahu announced a large-scale settlement expansion, consisting of a total of 800 housing units in East Jerusalem. The scheme contains of 560 housing units in the settlement Ma’Ale Adumim, 140 in Ramot and 100 in Har Homar and Pisgat Zeev.

Following a Palestinian attack on a 13-year old American-Israeli settler, Netanyahu has also approved construction of 42 new housing units in the settlement of Kiryat Arba near Hebron. The settlements are illegal according to international law, and the UN and EU leaders have denounced the expansion, urging Netanyahu to reverse the decision.

Netanyahu’s actions continue to escalate the situation in the West Bank and completely disregard the recently released Quartet report, which has resulted in the U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon condemning Israel for this continued expansion of illegal settlements.

(Photo credit: Middle East Monitor)

Remembering Mohammed Abu Khdeir two years after his brutal murder

2nd July 2016 | International Solidarity Movement, al-Khalil team | Occupied Palestine

Today marks the two year anniversary of the brutal kidnap, torture and eventual murder of 16-year-old Palestinian Mohammed Abu Khdeir. The teenager was kidnapped in the Shufat neighbourhood of occupied Jerusalem by Ben David of the illegal settlement Geva Binyamin and two assailants on 2 July 2014, Abu Khdeir was then beaten, forced to drink gasoline and burnt alive.

The autopsy found that gasoline was poured down Abu Khdeir’s throat and that there was soot in his lungs which shows that he was still breathing as this attackers burnt him alive. The autopsy also found that he was repeatedly beaten over the head with a sharp object, most likely a tire iron or a wrench.

Two days prior to Abu Khdeir’s abduction the group attempted to kidnap a 7-year-old boy Moussa Zaloum although he was able to escape with the help of his mother. The family reported the attempted kidnapping to Israeli police although they did not investigate the incident.

Three days after the attack, Mohammed’s cousin, 15-year-old American citizen Tariq Abu Khdeir was detained and brutally beaten by Israeli border police, an event caught on camera, before being released.

Earlier this year, a relative of Mohammed Abu Khdeir, 63 year old Coheir Abu Khdeir was also badly assaulted in an attack carried out in Shufat. When his family went to Israeli police they refused to take their complaint insisting that the 63-year-old would have to come to the police station himself.

On 2 July 2015 there was a peaceful demonstration held in commemoration for Mohammed Abu Khdeir which was violently dispersed by Israeli Forces. The Israeli Forces used pepper spray and tear gas on the non-violent demonstrators which included Palestinians, international activists and journalists.

Earlier this year, the ringleader of the attack Ben David was sentenced to life in prison and an additional 20 years while his two assailants, both minors at the time, were sentenced to life in prison and 21 years respectively.

Two years on we wish to remember Mohammed Abu Khdeir to ensure we don’t forget the tragedy of this brutal act of torture and murder.

Collective Punishment after Tel Aviv Shooting

10th June 2016 | International Solidarity Movement | occupied Palestine

Late on Wednesday night, two Palestinians from the West Bank town of Yatta opened fire in a Tel Aviv shopping center, killing four Israelis, and injuring sixteen. The shopping center stood adjacent to the Israeli Ministry of Defense, fueling speculation that the attack may have been inspired by the recent appointment of Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the right wing Yisrael Beiteinu party and illegal settler, to the position of Israeli Defense Minister. The two Palestinians are currently in Israeli custody, one of whom was wounded during the shoot-out.

Lieberman’s response to the first major crisis of his career, has been brutal. The entire town of Yatta (Population 64,277) has been closed off, with all Palestinians except emergency services barred from entering or leaving. Additional reports suggest that the Israeli Military has also taken the first steps toward demolishing the family homes of the two attackers. In addition to the closure of Yatta, the military has also announced that it is revoked all permits for Palestinians from the West Bank wishing to cross the green line in order to visit family, prisoners, or pray at al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan – approximately 83,000 permits in total will be revoked. Palestinians with Israeli work permits will still be allowed to make the crossing. In addition, two battalions of troops will be sent to the West Bank.

These tactics; permit restrictions, house demolitions, and closure of entire towns constitute collective punishment. Collective punishment, the practice of enacting revenge on the friends, family, or community of a criminal or combatant, is illegal under the fourth Geneva Convention. Israel has been widely condemned for using this tactic as a deterrent to Palestinian resistance. In this instance, close to 150,000 residents of the West Bank will be punished for the actions of just two.