Tag: Prisoner

Gaza protest supports Palestinian prisoners on hunger strike

3 October 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, Gaza

Today over a thousand Palestinians converged on the International Committee of the Red Cross building in Gaza, Palestine, continuing a tent protest that began outside the walled compound yesterday and bolstering a weekly sit-in by the families of Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons.

These events began a week of action in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners on their seventh day of an escalating hunger strike against the inhumane conditions in Israeli prisons. 35 Palestinian activists joined the prisoners in their open-ended hunger strike and a number of others, including the Gaza leaders of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, announced their participation in a one-day strike.

“I was in prison from October 15, 2003 until December 31, 2005,” said Mohammed Abu Uda, one of the many former prisoners in Gaza. He was arrested because someone had mentioned his name under torture, claiming that he was part of the resistance. He was taken to the prison in Ashkelon, where he was subjected to 68 days of investigation. “I was kept in solitary confinement for 30 days, I went out only for questioning. These interviews lasted from 8 to 24 hours, periods in which I could not eat nor drink nor sleep. Once I was questioned for 64 hours straight.”

Abu Uda was held from October 15, 2003 until December 31, 2009, serving a year beyond his initial sentence.

Abu Hamza, one of the organizers of the garrison to the Red Cross, explained that Palestinian prisoners “are kept in isolation, they are prevented from communicating with family or with anyone.” He also mentioned Palestinians like Abu Khaleel Khandeeja, Haragano Ishaq, Ali El Jaafri, and Elraiy Ibrahim, who have died in Israeli prisons due to torture, the denial of medication, and previous hunger strikes.

Israel currently detains over 6,000 Palestinians, including about 270 held under “administrative detention” without charge or trial.

Fathers speak on the mass arrests in Hebron

15 September 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

On Sunday the 21st of August the Israeli army carried out arrests in al Khalil (Hebron) on a scale not seen since 2003.  Around 120-200 people were kidnapped from their homes in pre-dawn raids and following the release of some, the final number in Israeli custody stands at 50. Interviews with local residents and families of those arrested indicate that the arrests were carried out for political reasons and were not based on new evidence or any security threat. Though the scale of the operation is unusual, Israel’s mode of operation with complete disregard for human rights and fair judicial process is institutional and routine.

We spoke with the father of Ali Natsheh, a 22-year-old law student who was arrested during the raid. At approximately 1:30 am Ali Natsheh’s 8 year old sister awoke to the sound of the Israeli army smashing the windows of her family home. She woke her father as the Israeli army surrounded and entered the house. His son was not home at the time of the raid so the army separated Ali’s father from his daughter and took them away from the house he was made to contact his son, who immediately returned home. Ali’s father explained.

“He knew that if he did not give himself up they would make problems for the family or even shoot him as a fugitive,” he said.

Smashed windows by Israeli military at the Natsheh home

Upon returning to his home, where the army were waiting, neighbors witnessed the army stripping and beating Ali Natseh before handcuffing him and taking him away in a jeep. Natseh’s father told us that his son had been arrested almost 3 years ago for involvement with Palestinian resistance groups but had since become a law student at Al Quds University and had no affiliation with any political groups. He was extremely worried about his son’s treatment. The last time Ali was detained, he became ill as a result of being kept for days in isolation in a freezing cold cell without medical treatment. He has suffered from long-term health problems since.

The arrest of Amer Abu Arafe is quite similar in that he too had been imprisoned in 2007 for involvement in resistance groups but had since completed a degree in media and became a journalist, his father Abdel Halim said. He said Amer was no longer involved with any political or resistance groups and was certainly not a security threat. Though he could think of no reason for his son’s arrest he was not particularly surprised as arbitrary arrests are a disturbingly routine feature of Palestinian life. 40% of the male Palestinian population have been detained by the Israeli army at some point in their life, and there are around 6,000 Palestinian political prisoners currently in Israeli custody.

Badran Jaber, a lecturer at Hebron University and friend of many of the families of those arrested, was highly skeptical that the arrests were for security reasons or based on new evidence. He argued these arrests constituted collective punishment of Palestinians for the attack in Eilat on August the 18th.

“Israeli authorities wanted large numbers to be arrested for political reasons: it does not matter to them whether they are innocent or guilty.”

A lack of evidence to support these arrests is inconsequential when you have a judicial system where military officers serve as judges and operate in collusion with military prosecutors without a jury or adequate provision.

The result of this system is a conviction rate of 96.7% mostly based on signed confessions written in Hebrew. A recent report by Israeli human rights organization B’tselem acknowledges that torture such as stress positions, sleep depravation, exposure to extreme temperatures, painful handcuffing and long periods of solitary confinement are used routinely and systematically to obtain these confessions and more violent forms of torture such as beatings still occur though are less common.

As of July 2011 Israel was holding 243 Palestinian prisoners under administrative detention, which allows for them to be held indefinitely without trial or even any knowledge of why they are being detained.

Despite the fact that it is widely acknowledged that Hamas was not behind the attacks that occurred in Eilat, Israel exploited the events to carry out air strikes on Gaza. The escalation of violence in Gaza and the mass arrests in Al Khalil are emblematic of Israel’s recurring policy of collective punishment, in which the only necessary criteria for being found guilty is being Palestinian.

While in Gaza: The Other Gilad Shalits

8 August 2011 | The Palestine Chronicle, Johnny Barber

‘Dear Johnny:

‘While you are in Gaza, please visit Gilad Shalit. He is the Israeli soldier who was kidnapped from outside Gaza 5 years ago, and has been held by Hamas without visits by anyone, including the Red Cross or Red Crescent, in violation of international law. I trust you are committed to human rights for all, and this small gesture should be quite easy to do as compared with the magnitude of arranging your flotilla. I look forward to seeing your video or photos or voice recording evidencing that Gilad is being treated well and is in good health.’

I thought about Shalit quite often as I traveled around Gaza. Though the writer of the email assumed I was unaware of the prisoner or his circumstance, it was not true. I knew he was just a teenager when captured. I knew he was a combatant- a gunner in a tank on the border of Gaza. I knew he was taken prisoner, not kidnapped.

I thought about the fear he faced as he was dragged from his tank 5 years ago, and his uncertain days imprisoned since then, days spent without family, without friends, without any contact with outside agencies. I tried to imagine the yearly landmarks; the birthdays, the anniversaries, the myriad dates and shared memories that mark our movement through life, passing without acknowledgement. I tried to imagine what his parents were going through, not knowing his condition or circumstance.

Even in Gaza, Shalit’s name comes up often. I attended the weekly demonstration of prisoners families held outside the ICRC every Monday. Mothers, fathers, wives, and children hold photos or posters of loved ones imprisoned in Israel for months, years, some for decades. A gentleman, recognizing I was from the U.S., said sarcastically, “Don’t these people know there is only one prisoner? His name is Shalit.”

Since 1967, 700,000 Palestinians have been “detained” by Israel. Currently 7000 people are imprisoned. 37 of them are women; over 300 of them are children.

When I visited the Ministry of Detainees in Gaza City I was challenged by the minister to name another region of the world where such a ministry was needed. The minister explained that this was an issue particular to Palestine because Israel imprisons so many people without charges and through military courts where evidence is hidden and trials are rigged. Many are convicted on coerced confessions. The minister’s position was that all prisoners, including Shalit, be treated with respect and dignity.

I was introduced to Umm Ahmed through Doa’a, a Ministry official who coordinates the weekly demonstrations at the ICRC. Umm Ahmed’s 19-year-old son, a university student, is imprisoned in Israel for just over a year. His story is not unique.

Ahmed was seriously injured during Operation Cast Lead in January 2009. Families near the buffer zone were given permission by the Israelis to leave their homes to get supplies. Umm Ahmed and her family were returning to their home. Half of the family members had come inside. Ahmed, and 3 cousins remained in the doorway when the drones were heard overhead, followed quickly by 2 missile strikes. Ahmed and one cousin were gravely injured, blasted into the alcove of the home. Ahmed’s abdomen was eviscerated, he had lost an eye and several fingers, and he was bleeding profusely from shrapnel wounds all over his body. No ambulances were in the area. Family members scooped up the broken bodies and rushed them to the hospital. On arrival, Umm Ahmed was told her son was dead.

Ahmed, despite his injuries, managed to cling to life. After emergency surgery he was transferred to the hospital in Al-Arish, Egypt where he underwent 10 surgeries in 10 months, including the removal of his pancreas, leaving him diabetic and dependant on insulin injections for the remainder of his life. On his return to Gaza, suffering from life threatening infections to his wounded arm and hand, the family sought additional treatment outside Gaza. It proved impossible to have him transferred to Europe, but after several attempts he received permission from Israel to travel to Jerusalem for the needed treatment.

On the day of his departure, November 25, 2009, his mother prepared food for him, adhering to a new diet specifically for diabetics. When he departed with his brother and father for Erez crossing, she followed him out the door, hugging him tightly. When she let go, she sensed something terrible was about to happen.

Shortly after 4pm when Ahmed, his brother and father reached Erez, Umm Ahmed received a call from her son, asking for Mohammed, the eldest brother. Umm Ahmed asked, “What is it? Is something wrong with Ahmed?” Her son hesitated then told her Ahmed had been taken at the crossing and was in Israeli custody.

The soldiers demanded that Ahmed and his father both strip naked. Ahmed, in his wheelchair, needed his father’s assistance to comply. Ahmed, though missing fingers on one hand and suffering from infections to his hand and elbow, was handcuffed and taken away. His father would not see him again. Ahmed’s father demanded Ahmed be released and allowed to return to Gaza. He was literally thrown out of the crossing and told to return to Gaza without his son. Without recourse, Ahmed’s father returned home.

Unlike Shalit who was taken by Palestinian fighters while on active duty in a tank on the Gaza border, the Israeli’s took Ahmed as he attempted to get treatment for wounds incurred at Israeli hands. Many Palestinians are ‘detained’, or perhaps my email writer’s term is more appropriate, ‘kidnapped’, by Israeli soldiers at checkpoints, from their cars, or from their beds in the middle of the night, and taken to Israel. Although the transfer of detainees to locations within the occupying power’s territory is illegal under international law, all Palestinian prisoners are currently held in Israel.

Ahmed was held under investigation for 38 days as the Israeli’s tried to elicit a confession. Regardless of his injuries, he was blindfolded, handcuffed, and routinely denied his medications. He suffered through diabetic comas throughout the 38 days. He did not confess. He was found guilty of monitoring Israeli activities in the buffer zone and sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison.

Since Hamas won an electoral decision in 2006, family visitation rules were tightened. Since 2007 all Gaza families have been denied visitation. In December 2009, the Israeli Court ruled that the right to family visits in prison is not within the “Framework of the basic humanitarian needs of the residents of the Strip, which Israel is obligated to enable” and that there was no need for family visits since prisoners could obtain basic supplies through the prison canteen. So like gunner Shalit, 700 other families have been denied visitation with their sons, daughters and children.

Umm Ahmed is concerned that her son is receiving inadequate treatment for his diabetes. It has been regularly reported that security prisoners receive inadequate food- both in quality and quantity. Regarding medical care, the Israeli prison authority has adopted a policy of systemic negligence in all its facilities. Prisons are extremely understaffed by medical personnel and visits to a doctor can take weeks, with actual treatment taking months. For a prisoner suffering from diabetes this can be deadly. Ahmed also needs constant care to treat infections resulting from all the shrapnel wounds to his body. Upon his detention, Ahmed spent 3 months in the hospital as a result of his mistreatment. While hospitalized it was determined he needs an operation to control his diabetes. In order to get an operation, Ahmed must wait. Ar-Ramleh prison hospital has a limited number of beds. Because of his inadequate diet and medication regime (most ill and injured prisoners live on aspirin, painkillers, and tranquilizers), his health continues to deteriorate. Though the operation has not yet been scheduled, the family has already been notified that Ahmed will not be released from prison until the fees for the operation are paid in full.

When Ban Ki-Moon visited Gaza in March of 2010, Umm Ahmed and her husband met with him and explained the situation of their son. Because of this meeting and the negative publicity it triggered for Israel, the family has received only sporadic news of their son. For the last 5 months they have heard nothing. The parents are anxiously awaiting word of their son.

I left Gaza without managing a visit with Shalit. But I left with the knowledge of thousands of Gilad Shalits in Israeli prisons. Many, like Ahmed, have no involvement in military operations. They were not dragged from their tanks, but were dragged from their cars, dragged from their beds, even dragged from their wheelchairs. Hundreds are children. They too, deserve basic humanitarian considerations. They too, deserve to be treated with decency and their health maintained. Their families also deserve answers and consideration. Shalit may be the only prisoner Americans have heard of, but he is not alone.

– Johnny Barber has traveled to Iraq, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria & Gaza to bear witness and document the suffering of people who are affected by war. He contributed this article to PalestineChronicle.com. Visit: www.oneBrightpearl-jb.blogspot.com.

Palestinian female prisoners suffer in Ramadan

7 August 2011 | Palestine Telegraph

Israeli prison administration decided to tighten its harsh measures against Palestinian female prisoners of Hasharon during the holy month of Ramadan.

A researcher at the international solidarity foundation, Ahmed al-Betawi, stated that Israeli prison administration refused to allow female prisoners of Hasharon prison to purchase their food from canteen.

He added that female prisoners have suffered from insects and high humidity especially in these very hot summer days, while the prison administration deprived them from using fans.

Palestinian prisoners emphasized that the unprecedented repressive campaign has been escalated by the prison administration during the holy month.

The lawyer of the international solidarity foundation visited Hasharon prison last Thursday and met a number of female prisoners who told him about misery they have lived in.

Palestinian officials condemned Israeli toughening measures that affect the lives of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners inside Israeli jails, calling for an end to Israeli violent practices and abuses.

No signs of ceasing resistance in Ni’lin

6 August 2011 | International Solidarity Movement, West Bank

On Friday, 5 August, the weekly demonstration against the illegal settlement near the Palestinian village of Ni’lin was held, despite the majority of its participants fasting for Ramadan. Although smaller than is usual it consisted of about forty people from the local community and a group of internationals from ISM and the Christian Peacemakers Team, some Israeli activists, and the Jordan Valley Solidarity Group.
The march succeeded in reaching the gate of the illegal annexation wall. Stopping in front of the huge metal construction, delegates from the Popular Committee of the village voiced their grievances and re-asserted their rights under international law to self determination and to live free of the harassment caused by Israeli encroachment on their land. A tire was set on fire as a symbolic act.
A group of young men went off to partake in their form of resistance by launching small stones over the wall, about 500m to the right of the gate. The military police retaliated with volleys of tear gas in a standoff that lasted around forty minutes. No one was seriously injured, and only one individual was treated for gas inhalation by attending members of the Red Cresent.
Afterwards, Saeed, a son of a prominent member of the local Popular Committee, commented on the relatively low level of repression experienced during this particular demonstration.
“Between, 2008 and 2010, the military arrested 90 people from this village. We had snipers in the village, shooting people and they used special, illegal bullets called ‘0.22’. They explode inside your body. We had 5 people killed,” he said.
Despite this history of aggression, the local commuity shows no signs of capitulation and is determined to fight for their human rights, sanctified and upheld by international law.