Auteur: KhamakarPress

For 16th day, 500 Palestinian administrative detainees continue to boycott Israeli Military Courts

On: By: KhamakarPress

Occupied Palestine (QNN)- Nearly 500 Palestinian administrative detainees in Israeli prisons have been boycotting Israeli Military Courts for the 16th day in a row, in protest of their indefinite detention without charges or trial.

The Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups said that in protest against their administrative detention without charges or trial by the Israeli occupation authorities, 500 Palestinian administrative detainees have been boycotting the Israeli Military Courts since January 1, 2022.

The boycott includes the initial hearings to uphold the administrative detention order, as well as appeal hearings and later sessions at the Supreme Court.

Under the banner, “Our decision is freedom … no to administrative detention,” administrative detainees said in a statement their move comes as a continuation of longstanding Palestinian efforts “to put an end to the unjust administrative detention practiced against our people by the occupation forces”.

They also noted that Israel’s use of the policy has expanded in recent years to include women, children and elderly people.

“Israeli military courts are an important aspect for the occupation in its system of oppression,” the detainees said, describing the courts as a “barbaric, racist tool that has consumed hundreds of years from the lives of our people under the banner of administrative detention, through nominal and fictitious courts – the results of which are predetermined by the military commander of the region”.

Since March 2002, the number of Palestinians in administrative detention has never fallen below 100.

According to the Palestinian prisoner advocacy groups, there are now 4,600 Palestinians held in Israeli occupation jails, including 34 women, 160 minors, and 500 administrative detainees held without charge or trial.

The groups said in a recently-issued report that during the year of 2021, ‘Israel’ issued 1,595 administrative detention orders against the Palestinians while 1,114 administrative detention orders were issued in 2020.

The director of the Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, attorney Sahar Francis, told Haaretz that “the authorities of the occupation are not honoring the limitations that international law has set on imposing administrative detentions and they are being done arbitrarily, something that is a war crime according to the occupation laws.”

According to Francis, the decision to boycott the legal system was made after many efforts were made to battle the administrative detention policy, including hunger strikes led by a few prisoners in recent months.

(Source / 16.01.2022)

Rep. Rashida Tlaib urges to investigate Israeli forces’ killing of elderly Palestinian American in West Bank

On: By: KhamakarPress
Palestinian-American congresswoman Rashida Tlaib attends pro-Palestinian protest in US’s Dearborn, Michigan, on 16 May

Washington (QNN)- U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib has urged US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to investigate the killing of elderly Palestinian-American, Omar Abul-Majid As’ad, after being detained and brutally beaten by Israeli occupation forces during a military raid in the occupied West Bank last week.

“Two days ago, Israeli troops stopped a car driven by 80-year-old Palestinian-American Omar Abdulmajeed Asaad. They dragged him from the car, beat him, and left him on the ground to die,” tweeted Tlaib, the first Palestinian Progressive Democrat and was born in Detroit to Palestinian immigrant parents.

“This is outrageous!” she added, calling on the US Secretary of State to investigate the incident.

Two days ago, Israeli troops stopped a car driven by 80-year-old Palestinian-American Omar Abdulmajeed Asaad. They dragged him from the car, beat him, and left him on the ground to die. This is outrageous! I call on @SecBlinken to investigate.

On January 12, the 80-year-old Palestinian-American Omar Abul-Majid As’ad died after being detained and brutally beaten by Israeli occupation forces who also blindfolded and handcuffed him during a nighttime military raid on the village of Jiljilyya, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

The elderly man died of a heart attack, as the Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed in a statement.

Local residents explained that an Israeli occupation force raided the village of Jiljilyya after midnight and started assaulting all the Palestinian passers. As’ad was violently detained and beaten by the Israeli occupation soldiers when he was coming back home after visiting his relatives.

The occupation soldiers stopped his vehicle and pulled him out of it. They blindfolded and handcuffed him before starting to drag him on the ground and brutally beating him, leaving him in an under-construction building in the village of Jiljilyya.

The residents added that at about 4:30 AM, the Israeli occupation soldiers had left the village and As’ad was later found dead by a resident walking in the village near the building.

Photographs circulating on social media showed a black plastic tie around at least one of his wrists.

As’ad had a history of cardiac and respiratory illness, according to his family, who also said he had lived in Milwaukee for decades before returning to the occupied West Bank about 10 years ago.

Imagine an 80-year-old man being tied to the back and beaten to death by soldiers as young as his grandchildren…

Afbeelding
Afbeelding
Afbeelding

The US has also asked ‘Israel’ for a clarification and expressed its “condolences about this tragedy.”

Asked for comment on the matter during a daily press briefing last Wednesday, US State Department spokesman Ned Price began by confirming that the elderly Palestinian man was an American citizen.

“We have been in touch with Mr. As’ad’s family to express our condolences about this tragedy. We’re providing all of the consular assistance to the family at this time,” Price said.

“We’ve also been in touch with the government of Israel to seek clarification about this incident, and as you may have seen the Israeli Defense Forces have indicated that there’s an ongoing investigation into the matter.”

“We support a thorough investigation into the circumstances of this incident,” Price added.

(Source / 16.01.2022)

Under forces protection, extremist Israeli settlers break into Al-Aqsa in occupied Jerusalem

On: By: KhamakarPress

Occupied Jerusalem (QNN)- Dozens of extremist Israeli settlers have broken into the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied city of Jerusalem, since the early morning hours of Sunday, provoking Palestinian worshipers.

Over 50 Israeli settlers broke into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque during the morning break-in session, under the occupation forces protection, and their incursions to the mosque continue till this moment.

The settlers entered through the Damascus Gate- which Palestinians call Bab al-Amud Gate.

They are now provoking the Palestinian worshipers by performing Talmudic prayers in the courtyards of the holy site.

Israeli occupation authorities have allowed settler incursions to the mosque since 2003, under the forces’ protection.

Since the start of 2021, 34,562 settlers broke into the holy site, setting a new record, as in 2020, 19,000 settlers broke into the mosque and 29,700 settlers in 2019, according to Al-Qastal, a Palestinian network hub for Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem.

There have been repeated objections and warnings by the Palestinian religious authorities as the settlers’ incursions provoke Palestinian worshippers of the mosque.

Israeli forces always facilitate and protect the settlers while preventing Palestinian worshipers from entering it, assaulting and detaining them.

The Al-Aqsa mosque is one of the holiest sites in Islam.

Jews refer to the area as the Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two prominent Jewish temples in ancient times.

The complex also includes the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of the most sacred Christian sites in the world.

(Source / 16.01.2022)

Palestinian Factions Invited to Algeria to Attend National Dialog

On: By: KhamakarPress

Top delegations from major Palestinian factions are slated to arrive successively in the Algerian capital in the coming days at the invitation of President Abdul-Majid Tebboune to participate in inter-Palestinian reconciliation dialog.

Last Month, Tebboune announced, following a meeting with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas in Algiers, that he decided to host a conference for the Palestinian factions in the country in a bid to heal the national rift.

According to the Algerian al-Shorouk newspaper, the Algerian leadership will hold meetings separately with each visiting delegation to listen to its standpoint before determining the next step later in light of the results.  

A reporter for the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) said that a delegation from the Fatah Movement led by Azzam al-Ahmad would arrive first in Algiers.

Representatives from the Hamas Movement, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine will travel to Algeria in the coming days to hold separate meetings with local officials, he said.

The last delegation will be from Islamic Jihad and will arrive in the country at the end of the current month, he added.

Recently, head of Hamas’s political bureau Ismail Haneyya received an official invitation from Algeria’s ambassador to Qatar to discuss means of making successful national dialog.

Haneyya welcomed the invitation and formed a delegation from the political bureau, including Khalil al-Hayya and Husam Badran.

(Source / 16.01.2022)

Palestinians Demonstrate in Naqab Calling for Immediate Release of Detainees

On: By: KhamakarPress

Days of Palestine – Naqab – Hundreds of Palestinian Bedouins demonstrated on Sunday in the city of Bir as-Sabi, south of occupied Palestine, calling for the immediate release of dozens of fellow Palestinians detained by the Israeli occupation authorities since last week.

Over 130 Palestinians were detained by Israeli occupation forces during last week’s events when thousands of Palestinian Bedouins took to the streets in the villages of Sa’wa, Tal Sabi, and Al-Atrash in the Naqab province to protest against an Israeli forestation project there, which is aimed at impeding the geographic expansion of Palestinian villages in the area.

The escalation in Naqab began on Monday, when bulldozers from the Jewish National Fund (JNF), a quasi-governmental agency, arrived with heavy police protection in the nearby village of al-Atrash and razed Bedouin farming lands, in order to plant trees.

Bedouin Palestinians protested against the move and confrontations have continued for days. Videos and images shared on social media showed Israeli forces violently arresting and beating residents who arrived to defend the lands they use for farming wheat and barley.

The protests in Naqab were met by brutal Israeli force, and scores of protesters were either injured or arrested.

(Source / 16.01.2022)

MoH: Donations for Palestinians cancer center establishment not enough to launch it

On: By: KhamakarPress
MoH: Donations for Palestinians cancer center establishment not enough to launch it

Agencies – Gaza Post – Regarding a debate on social media about the fate of a cancer center project named Khaled Al-Hassan Cancer Center and Bone Marrow Transplant that was scheduled to be built near Ramallah, the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) stated “ last night that the economic donors collected to create the center are accessible and kept in a bank account pertaining to the Khaled Al-Hassan Foundation, but that they are insufficient to begin work on the project.

The proposals for the center, with an ability of 250 beds and a projected value of $160 million, were completed, according to a brief statement.

It has been frozen at the present moment due to a lack of funds required to begin the project, the Health Ministry told reporters. The ministry and government are working to offer the financial basis for the creation of the center, and in stages, to serve the (cancer) sick people.

In its strategy to localize healthcare care in Palestine, it stated that treating cancer sufferers is a top priority.

(Source / 15.01.2022)

Hamas: ‘Demonstrations in Negev prove Israel’s inability to defeat Palestinians’

On: By: KhamakarPress
Palestinian Bedouins, who are natives of the Negev Desert in the south of Israel, stage a demonstration against the planting works carried out by the Jewish National Fund, on January 13, 2022 in Israel [Mücahit Aydemir / Anadolu Agency]
Palestinian Bedouins, who are natives of the Negev Desert in the south of Israel, stage a demonstration against the planting works carried out by the Jewish National Fund, on January 13, 2022 in Israel

Hamas Spokesperson Hazem Qasem asserted on Friday that the uprising in the Negev region demonstrates that the Zionist occupation cannot defeat the Palestinians despite using all of its “colonial tools”.

“Using all of its colonial tools, the Zionist Israeli occupation failed to uproot our people from the Negev,” Qasem avowed in a statement.

“Palestinian patriotism achieved clear progress against the Zionist colonial mechanisms,” he added, pointing to the Jewish National Fund (JNF)’s project to plant trees in the Negev region as a means of removing the Arabs from their lands.

“This is a continuous battle,” he expressed, adding:

It will never end without the victory of our people, who are the real owners of the land.

Read: Many injured as police break up protests in Israel’s Negev region

Earlier on Friday, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, Adalah, disclosed that the Israeli police used “all brutal means” to suppress a “legal” demonstration organised on Thursday in the Negev. Adalah reported that the Israeli police detained a large number of protesters.

There are around 300 Israeli Arabs – Palestinians who did not flee the Israeli occupation in 1948 – living on five per cent of their land, while Israel confiscated 95 per cent of it in 1948.

Arabs in the Negev region consist of Bedouin tribes living in villages scattered across the area. Many have been there since before the Israeli occupation.

Read: Forestation in Negev to continue, Israel minister says

Israel is trying to steal more Palestinian land in the Negev - Cartoon [Sabaaneh/Middle East Monitor]
Israel is trying to steal more Palestinian land in the Negev – Cartoon

(Source / 15.01.2022)

UNRWA Calls For Immediate Release Of Critically Ill Child Amal Nakhleh

On: By: KhamakarPress

By UNRWA: (January 13, 2022) Amal Muamar Nakhleh is a 17-year-old Palestine refugee from the Jalazone camp. Amal was placed in administrative detention by the Israeli Security Forces (ISF) for six months on 21 January 2021.

The administrative detention was then extended for four months in May 2021 and then again in September 2021 for an additional four months. When the current extension expires on 18 January 2022, Amal will have been in prison for a year and will be 18 years old, no longer a minor.

Neither Amal nor his family are aware of the charges against him and have been informed by the Israeli authorities that it is a “confidential administrative case.” Amal’s legal team stated that this is one of the most prolonged cases of administrative attention of a child that they have come across.

Amal was born three months prematurely and was diagnosed with severe autoimmune disease: myasthenia gravis. This condition requires continuous medical treatment and monitoring. Just a few months prior to his detention, Amal underwent surgery to remove a cancerous mass.

Due to his health conditions, Amal cannot be vaccinated against COVID-19 and must take immune-suppressants, meaning that his life is at high risk if he contracts COVID-19. As is well known, prison settings are not appropriate for treating and monitoring autoimmune diseases, let alone providing adequate protection against COVID-19.

During the military court proceedings in the past few days – one of the few times Amal’s family was allowed to see him in the past year – his family observed that Amal had difficulty talking and breathing, both of which are signs that his medical condition has deteriorated.

During the court hearing, Amal informed the judge that he would start a hunger strike if his administrative detention were to be extended further.

If he takes this step, Amal would be at grave risk due to his already fragile health condition. A decision on the extension of his administrative detention is scheduled to be taken this Tuesday, 18 January 2022.

The administrative detention imposed on Amal without charges and based on classified evidence is a form of arbitrary detention not permissible under public international law. It deprives him of the appropriate care required by his underlying medical condition, exposing him to increased risks of aggravation of his health.

Israel, as a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, shall ensure that the “arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.”

In accordance with the Convention, “[e]very child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age” and that any detained child “shall have the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his or her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt decision on any such action.”

UNRWA West Bank calls for the immediate release of Amal Nakhleh from administrative detention on urgent humanitarian grounds and is highly concerned about the ongoing arbitrary detention of a minor.Background Information:

UNRWA is confronted with an increased demand for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine refugees, the extent of their vulnerability and their deepening poverty. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions and financial support has been outpaced by the growth in needs.

As a result, the UNRWA programme budget, which supports the delivery of core essential services, operates with a large shortfall. UNRWA encourages all Member States to work collectively to exert all possible efforts to fully fund the Agency’s programme budget. UNRWA emergency programmes and key projects, also operating with large shortfalls, are funded through separate funding portals.

UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 with a mandate to provide humanitarian assistance and protection to registered Palestine refugees in the Agency’s area of operations, namely the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight.

Thousands of Palestine refugees who lost both their homes and livelihood because of the 1948 conflict have remained displaced and in need of significant support for over seventy years.

UNRWA helps them achieve their full potential in human development through quality services it provides in education, health care, relief and social services, protection, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance and emergency assistance. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions.

(Source / 15.01.2022)

Army Shoots A Palestinian Child In Qalqilia

On: By: KhamakarPress

Israeli soldiers shot, Friday, a Palestinian child near the northern entrance of Qalqilia city, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

Media sources said dozens of Palestinians marched in the area, condemning the ongoing Israeli violations before the soldiers attacked them with live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets, and gas bombs.

They added that one child was shot with a rubber-coated steel bullet in the leg and was rushed to a hospital where his condition was described as moderate.

Palestinian medics also provided treatment to many residents who suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation.

In related news, the soldiers injured six Palestinians during the weekly procession against the illegal Annexation Wall and colonies in Kufur Qaddoum, east of Qalqilia.

In occupied Jerusalem, the soldiers abducted a Palestinian child after stopping him in a neighborhood in the Old City and took him to an interrogation facility.

(Source / 15.01.2022)

Army Attacks Protesters In Sbeih Mountain In Beita

On: By: KhamakarPress

Israeli soldiers attacked, Friday, dozens of Palestinian protesters in Sbeih Mountain in Beita town, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus after dozens of residents marched to their mountain to protest the illegal violations and annexation of their lands.

Media sources said dozens of Palestinians marched to their mountain where they held Friday noon prayers and started chanting against the ongoing and escalating Israeli violations.

They added that the Palestinians then tried to reach the top of the mountain before the soldiers started firing a barrage of gas bombs, concussion grenades, rubber-coated steel bullets, and a few live rounds.

The soldiers also chased and attempted to abduct many nonviolent protesters who were able to escape despite extensive military deployment.

Earlier Friday, the soldiers bulldozed and destroyed several agricultural roads leading to Sbeih Mountain, and uprooted dozens of olive trees.

The Palestinians have been holding ongoing processions on their lands in Sbeih Mountain since May of last year after a group of illegal Israeli colonizers installed an outpost atop the mountain. During these protests, the soldiers injured thousands of Palestinians and killed several others, including children.

The Mountain, owned by the Palestinians, has significant strategic importance, especially since if it is occupied by the colonizers the colony would lead to the annexation of 20 Dunams of Palestinian lands, and would also lead to the isolation of a large area of Palestinian lands.

(Source / 15.01.2022)