28 apr 2019
The Israeli occupation forces have arrested 50,000 Palestinian children since 1967, including 16,655 arrested after the outbreak of the Second Intifada in 2000.
This was voiced by Abdul-Naser Farwana, the head of the research and documentation unit at the Palestinian Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission, on Sunday during a presentation for a conference in Brussels on Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Farwana said that Israel is pursuing a systematic arrest policy against Palestinian children with the aim of destroying their life and future.
He pointed out that the annual child arrest rate from 2000 to 2012 was about 700, while from 2011 to 2018 it increased to 1250.
Farwana called on all those concerned to exert more efforts to support the Palestinian prisoners and expose the violations and crimes committed against child detainees.
This was voiced by Abdul-Naser Farwana, the head of the research and documentation unit at the Palestinian Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission, on Sunday during a presentation for a conference in Brussels on Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Farwana said that Israel is pursuing a systematic arrest policy against Palestinian children with the aim of destroying their life and future.
He pointed out that the annual child arrest rate from 2000 to 2012 was about 700, while from 2011 to 2018 it increased to 1250.
Farwana called on all those concerned to exert more efforts to support the Palestinian prisoners and expose the violations and crimes committed against child detainees.
Dozens of Jewish settlers on Sunday morning desecrated the Aqsa Mosque’s courtyards and plateaus under tight police protection.
According to local sources, the Israeli occupation police escorted groups of settlers as they were touring the Aqsa Mosque in the morning.
On Saturday, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said that over 2,230 settlers defiled the Aqsa Mosque compound during the Hebrew passover holiday last week.
Meanwhile, the Israeli police kidnapped on Sunday four Jerusalemite citizens from their homes in Issawiya neighborhood, east of Jerusalem.
The detainees were identified as Munir Aliyan, Mahmoud Mustafa, Ayyoub Abul-Hems and Younis Aliyan.
The Israeli police also released a Palestinian child called Mutaz Zeitoun on condition of not leaving home for five days. He was kidnapped by police officers on Saturday night from Silwan district, south of the Aqsa Mosque.
According to local sources, the Israeli occupation police escorted groups of settlers as they were touring the Aqsa Mosque in the morning.
On Saturday, the Wadi Hilweh Information Center said that over 2,230 settlers defiled the Aqsa Mosque compound during the Hebrew passover holiday last week.
Meanwhile, the Israeli police kidnapped on Sunday four Jerusalemite citizens from their homes in Issawiya neighborhood, east of Jerusalem.
The detainees were identified as Munir Aliyan, Mahmoud Mustafa, Ayyoub Abul-Hems and Younis Aliyan.
The Israeli police also released a Palestinian child called Mutaz Zeitoun on condition of not leaving home for five days. He was kidnapped by police officers on Saturday night from Silwan district, south of the Aqsa Mosque.
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Sunday at dawn, nine Palestinians, including a child, from their homes in several parts of the occupied West Bank.
The soldiers invaded and searched dozens of homes across the West Bank, causing damage, and interrogated many Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards.
Dozens of soldiers invaded the al-‘Arroub refugee camp, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and abducted Obeida Akram Jawabra, Mohammad Taha al-‘Adarba and a child, identified as Rani Ahmad Hdeib.
The soldiers searched many homes in the governorate, including the home of a former political prisoner, identified as Khairi Skafi.
In addition, the soldiers fired several live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs, at youngsters protesting the invasion into their neighborhoods, and homes, in Nablus, Jericho and Hebron.
The soldiers also abducted Bara’ Jad, from his home in Barta’a town, which is surrounded and isolated by the illegal Israeli Annexation Wall, southwest of Jenin, in northern West Bank.
The abducted Palestinians have been identified as:
The soldiers invaded and searched dozens of homes across the West Bank, causing damage, and interrogated many Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards.
Dozens of soldiers invaded the al-‘Arroub refugee camp, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and abducted Obeida Akram Jawabra, Mohammad Taha al-‘Adarba and a child, identified as Rani Ahmad Hdeib.
The soldiers searched many homes in the governorate, including the home of a former political prisoner, identified as Khairi Skafi.
In addition, the soldiers fired several live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs, at youngsters protesting the invasion into their neighborhoods, and homes, in Nablus, Jericho and Hebron.
The soldiers also abducted Bara’ Jad, from his home in Barta’a town, which is surrounded and isolated by the illegal Israeli Annexation Wall, southwest of Jenin, in northern West Bank.
The abducted Palestinians have been identified as:
- Islam Saleh Dar Mousa, Beit Liqya town, west of Ramallah.
- Osama Nathir Salim, Silwad town, east of Ramallah.
- Azzam Wassel, Silwad town.
- Hatem Shahin, Nablus.
- Bara’ Jad, Barta’a, Jenin.
- Rani Hdeib, al-‘Arroub refugee camp, Hebron.
- Obeida Akram Jawabra, al-‘Arroub refugee camp, Hebron.
- Ahmad Ra’fat al-Badawi, al-‘Arroub refugee camp, Hebron.
- Mahmoud Seder, Jericho.
27 apr 2019
The Israeli police on Saturday abducted a Palestinian child inside al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Occupied Jerusalem.
Local sources said that the Israeli police arrested Hammam al-Huseini at al-Aqsa Mosque and transferred him to a nearby detention center for interrogation.
The Israeli police constantly abuse the Palestinian children of Jerusalem, including minors under 10, and target them with abduction, house arrest, and banishment from the holy city.
Local sources said that the Israeli police arrested Hammam al-Huseini at al-Aqsa Mosque and transferred him to a nearby detention center for interrogation.
The Israeli police constantly abuse the Palestinian children of Jerusalem, including minors under 10, and target them with abduction, house arrest, and banishment from the holy city.
26 apr 2019
The Belgian capital Brussels is set to host an international conference starting on Saturday on the Palestinian children detained in Israeli prisons.
Abdul-Naser Farwana, the head of the documentation unit at the Palestinian Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission, said that the two-day conference is organized by the European Coalition for Palestinian Prisoners Rights.
Farwana told Quds Press that the conference will witness the participation of the Palestinian minister of prisoners' affairs Qadri Abu Baker, human rights organizations, ex-prisoners, notables, pro-Palestinian groups, and peace activists from all over the world.
Farwana said that the conference will shed light on the Palestinian child detainees and the violations and torture they are subjected to in Israeli jails. It will also include documentary films, photo exhibitions, and testimonies by ex-prisoners who served different sentences in Israeli prisons.
Israel is holding nearly 6,500 Palestinians in its lock-ups, 1,500 of whom have health issues, 400 are under the age of 18, 450 are detained without charge or trial, and 9 are members of the Palestinian Legislative Council.
Abdul-Naser Farwana, the head of the documentation unit at the Palestinian Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs Commission, said that the two-day conference is organized by the European Coalition for Palestinian Prisoners Rights.
Farwana told Quds Press that the conference will witness the participation of the Palestinian minister of prisoners' affairs Qadri Abu Baker, human rights organizations, ex-prisoners, notables, pro-Palestinian groups, and peace activists from all over the world.
Farwana said that the conference will shed light on the Palestinian child detainees and the violations and torture they are subjected to in Israeli jails. It will also include documentary films, photo exhibitions, and testimonies by ex-prisoners who served different sentences in Israeli prisons.
Israel is holding nearly 6,500 Palestinians in its lock-ups, 1,500 of whom have health issues, 400 are under the age of 18, 450 are detained without charge or trial, and 9 are members of the Palestinian Legislative Council.
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Obaida Akram Jawabra is 15 and has already been arrested twice by Israel.
The teenager, from the Arroub refugee camp in the southern occupied West Bank, is among hundreds of Palestinian children to be arrested by Israel each year. “The first time was really difficult. I was on my way to the store when they arrested me,” Obaida says in a new film named after him. “The soldiers would beat me in places that would leave no marks so there wouldn’t be evidence on my body that I could use to testify against them,” Obaida says. The film was produced by Matthew Cassel for Defense for Children International Palestine (DCIP). Cassel is a former editor of The Electronic Intifada. Israel subjects Palestinian children in its jails to “slapping, beating, kicking and violent pushing,” according to prisoners rights group Addameer, as well as routine verbal abuse. Israel also subjects Palestinian children to sexual assault and harassment in its jails. Approximately 75 percent of Palestinian children imprisoned by Israel report physical violence, and 62 percent report verbal violence, according to DCIP. Disrupting education Israeli military imprisonment and torture have traumatic and often lasting effects on children after their release, even if time spent in prison was brief. “The arrest of children has a destructive impact on the level of children’s mental health,” Addameer states, making children more susceptible to drop out of school upon their release and harming their career prospects. “Arrest, interrogation or house arrest – even for several months – can damage beyond repair years’ worth of studies,” the group adds. Israel does not provide appropriate education for Palestinian children in prisons, forcing children to try to catch up on school work upon their release “while shouldering the invisible psychological consequences of traumatic military arrests and interrogations,” according to DCIP. When Obaida was released from prison, he was unable to catch up with school work. He had to drop out and join a vocational school, called the Arroub Agricultural Secondary Coeducational School. The school has pupils who have already been to prison. Others were arrested while they were pupils at the school. “In both cases, we find that when these students come back to us, they can have trouble fitting in. It’s not easy for them to interact with others or build relationships,” Rashid Arrar, a counselor at the school says in the film. Location on highway The school’s location plays a role in the pupils’ susceptibility to arrests. “We are located in an area that sees a lot of friction,” Arrar says in the film. The school lies near Highway 60 between Bethlehem and Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank. This highway, used by Israeli settlers, extends from the city of Nazareth in northern Israel, cuts through the occupied West Bank and ends in the city of Bir al-Saba in the far south of Israel. Obaida, like many other children in Arroub, needs to cross the highway in order to get to school. “Sometimes the Israeli forces assault the children. Sometimes there are arrests and raids on the school,” Arrar says. |
Israel forbids Palestinians from traveling on the highway in certain areas without a permit. Palestinians can reach the road only by going through military checkpoints.
Israeli settlers are not subjected to the same restrictions.
At checkpoints, Israeli forces pull over Palestinian-owned vehicles – with green license plates – aside for inspection. Israeli-owned cars – with yellow license plates – are typically allowed to pass through without inspection.
“Dubious distinction”
“Israel has the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world that systematically prosecutes between 500 and 700 children in military courts each year,” according to the No Way to Treat a Child campaign.
More than 12,000 Palestnian children – some as young as 12 – were detained by Israel between 2000 and 2017.
Ahed Tamimi became an icon of Palestinian child prisoners after spending eight months in jail for slapping and shoving a fully armed Israeli soldier in a video recorded by her mother during December 2017. She was 16 at the time and turned 17 in prison.
Israeli interrogators sexually harassed Ahed during a taped interrogation.
Shortly before Ahed slapped a soldier, Israeli troops shot in the head and seriously injured her 15-year-old cousin Muhammad Fadel Tamimi. The Israeli authorities then lied about the incident, by saying he “fell off his bike.”
Ahed’s 15-year-old brother Muhammad Bassem Tamimi was detained earlier this month from the family’s home in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh.
This video shows Israeli occupation forces detaining Muhammad from his home.
Muhammad Fadel Tamimi, Ahed’s injured cousin, was charged earlier this month for allegedly throwing stones and engaging in “violent acts.”
Throwing stones is a common charge Israel uses against Palestinian children, which is “punishable under military law by up to 20 years in prison,” Addameer notes.
Last year, Minnesota representative Betty McCollum introduced the first bill in the US Congress that would prohibit Israel from using any of the billions it receives annually in military aid for the detention, torture and abuse of Palestinian children.
The bill currently has 30 co-sponsors.
During March, 205 children were held in Israeli jails, more than 30 of whom were under 16.
“Not complete freedom”
“A lot happened to me in prison, and when I left I noticed a lot had changed,” Obaida says in the film.
During a conversation with a friend who was also imprisoned by Israel, the pair bond on the difficulties and lessons of being detained.
“When I was in prison, I used to look forward to my court dates because it meant a change of scenery,” Obaida’s friend tells him in the film.
“On visitation days, you’d see your parents. That was the only good thing about prison.”
“Nothing is good in prison,” Obaida responds, and they both agree, although adding that the difficulties of being a child in Israeli prison has taught them patience.
“I learned how to cook and to work with others, and how to be polite and respectful,” Obaida says.
Despite being released from prison, Obaida says his happiness is not complete.
“I feel freedom but it is not complete freedom. We first have to be liberated [from the occupation] before I can feel that am truly free.”
Israeli settlers are not subjected to the same restrictions.
At checkpoints, Israeli forces pull over Palestinian-owned vehicles – with green license plates – aside for inspection. Israeli-owned cars – with yellow license plates – are typically allowed to pass through without inspection.
“Dubious distinction”
“Israel has the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world that systematically prosecutes between 500 and 700 children in military courts each year,” according to the No Way to Treat a Child campaign.
More than 12,000 Palestnian children – some as young as 12 – were detained by Israel between 2000 and 2017.
Ahed Tamimi became an icon of Palestinian child prisoners after spending eight months in jail for slapping and shoving a fully armed Israeli soldier in a video recorded by her mother during December 2017. She was 16 at the time and turned 17 in prison.
Israeli interrogators sexually harassed Ahed during a taped interrogation.
Shortly before Ahed slapped a soldier, Israeli troops shot in the head and seriously injured her 15-year-old cousin Muhammad Fadel Tamimi. The Israeli authorities then lied about the incident, by saying he “fell off his bike.”
Ahed’s 15-year-old brother Muhammad Bassem Tamimi was detained earlier this month from the family’s home in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh.
This video shows Israeli occupation forces detaining Muhammad from his home.
Muhammad Fadel Tamimi, Ahed’s injured cousin, was charged earlier this month for allegedly throwing stones and engaging in “violent acts.”
Throwing stones is a common charge Israel uses against Palestinian children, which is “punishable under military law by up to 20 years in prison,” Addameer notes.
Last year, Minnesota representative Betty McCollum introduced the first bill in the US Congress that would prohibit Israel from using any of the billions it receives annually in military aid for the detention, torture and abuse of Palestinian children.
The bill currently has 30 co-sponsors.
During March, 205 children were held in Israeli jails, more than 30 of whom were under 16.
“Not complete freedom”
“A lot happened to me in prison, and when I left I noticed a lot had changed,” Obaida says in the film.
During a conversation with a friend who was also imprisoned by Israel, the pair bond on the difficulties and lessons of being detained.
“When I was in prison, I used to look forward to my court dates because it meant a change of scenery,” Obaida’s friend tells him in the film.
“On visitation days, you’d see your parents. That was the only good thing about prison.”
“Nothing is good in prison,” Obaida responds, and they both agree, although adding that the difficulties of being a child in Israeli prison has taught them patience.
“I learned how to cook and to work with others, and how to be polite and respectful,” Obaida says.
Despite being released from prison, Obaida says his happiness is not complete.
“I feel freedom but it is not complete freedom. We first have to be liberated [from the occupation] before I can feel that am truly free.”
