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14-Year-Old Palestinian Boy Released after ‘Torture’ in Israeli Detention (VIDEOS)

Palestinian child prisoner Athal Al-Azzeh was released on bail. (Photo: via Social Media)

A 14-year-old Palestinian boy was released on Tuesday after spending 11 days in Israeli detention, Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported.

An Israeli military court, located close to the Ofer army base in the occupied West Bank, let Athal Al-Azzeh out on bail. Israeli prosecutors will be lodging an appeal against his release, according to Palestinian lawyer Munther Abu Ahmed.

The boy’s uncle, Mohammed Al-Azzeh, said his detention is further evidence of Israel’s targeting of Palestinian children.

“They go after children and stop them from exercising their right to education, their right to freedom of movement, and the practice of their identity,” he said.

Israeli forces reportedly assaulted the young boy and then detained him as he traveled to his grandmother’s home in the Azzeh, or Beit Jibrin refugee camp in Bethlehem on April 15.

Israeli forces detained Al-Azzeh at the entrance of Beit Jibrin. He was taken to the illegal settlement of Gush Etzion where he was interrogated.

The teenager was moved more than once while held by Israeli forces before being taken to the Atarot settlement, according to his uncle.

The 14-year-old’s release came as relatives and supporters of Al-Azzeh held a demonstration near the Ofer military court during Tuesday’s court session.

Al-Azzeh was forbidden from talking to his father during Sunday’s court session and what appeared to bruise could be seen on the boy’s face, according to Al-Quds Al-Arabi.

Israel’s use of military proceedings against civilians has been widely condemned as unjust by human rights organizations, particularly when children are involved.

(The New Arab, PC, Social Media)

2:45 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israeli Airstrike near Damascus Kills Nine Syrians

Israel has carried out dozens of air raids in neighboring Syria. (Photo: File)

Israeli airstrikes near Syria’s capital, Damascus, have killed nine people, including five Syrian soldiers, in the deadliest such raid since the start of 2022, Syrian media reported.

“The Israeli enemy carried out an air assault at dawn, targeting several positions around Damascus,” a military source was quoted as saying by the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

“The investigation indicated that four soldiers were killed, three others injured and material damage noted.”

The latest strike followed another near Damascus on April 14, without casualties, according to SANA.

The missiles, according to Reuters, were fired from the Israeli seaside city of Tiberias and most were shot down by Syrian air defenses.

Meanwhile, an Israeli military spokesperson declined to comment to Reuters about the reported strike.

Israel has carried out hundreds of air raids on Syria throughout the years.

(MEMO, PC, Social Media)

2:36 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

ICC Case Filed over Systematic Targeting of Palestinian Journalists

Israeli occupation forces often commit violations against Palestinian journalists. (Photo: via ActiveStills.org)

Legal submissions accusing Israel of systematically targeting journalists working in Palestine and failing to properly investigate killings of media workers, which amount to war crimes, have been submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS) and the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), working with leading human rights lawyers from Bindmans LLP and Doughty Street Chambers, submitted the formal complaint to the ICC in early April 2022.

The ICC’s Prosecutor’s Office (OPT) formally acknowledged receipt of the complaint on April 25.

The complaint which alleges war crimes against journalists by Israel’s security forces will now be considered by the OPT and could lead to a formal investigation and prosecution.

The complaint details the systematic targeting of Palestinian journalists on behalf of four named victims – Ahmed Abu Hussein, Yaser Murtaja, Muath Amarneh and Nedal Eshtayeh – who were killed or maimed by Israeli snipers while covering demonstrations in Gaza. All were wearing clearly marked PRESS vests at the time they were shot.

The complaint also details the targeting of media and bombing of the Al­Shorouk and Al­Jawhara Towers in Gaza City in May 2021 including the cases of Alam News, Al Hayat Newspapers, Mayadeen Media, Al Bawaba 24 and others.

The IFJ has repeatedly condemned the deliberate targeting of journalists and media facilities by Israel. At least 46 journalists have been killed since 2000 and no one has been held to account.

(WAFA, PC, Social Media)

1:35 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

WATCH: 21-Year-Old Palestinian Youth Killed by Israeli Forces in Jenin

Ahmad Massad, 21, was killed by Israeli forces in Jenin. (Photo: via Social Media)

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian youth and injured three others on Wednesday, during a military raid into the occupied northern West Bank city of Jenin, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Jani Abu Jokha, head of the Ibn Sina hospital, told WAFA that Ahmad Mohammad Massad, 18, from the village of Burqin, was pronounced dead after he was shot with a bullet in the head, adding that three other youths were wounded.

Israeli forces raided Jenin city and its refugee camp to arrest activists. Intense clashes broke out between the youths and the soldiers who opened live fire at the stone-throwing youths killing one and injuring the three others who were hit in the leg and pelvis and reported in stable condition, according to the Ministry of Health.

(WAFA, PC, Social Media)

8:49 am | Posted in Blog | News | Videos | Read More »

Flare-up on Lebanon Border after Israeli Raids at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque

Tension has been running high on the Lebanon-Israel border. (Photo: Supplied)

A rocket launched from Lebanon on Monday struck in Israel, which responded with artillery fire, following repeated Israeli military raids at Al-Aqsa Mosque, Reuters news agency reported.

On Twitter, the Israeli military said it fired dozens of shells at “open spaces in south Lebanon, near the launch area, and also at an infrastructure target”, which it did not identify.

Palestinian factions in Lebanon have fired sporadically on Israel in the past. However, the border has been largely quiet since Israel’s war on Lebanon in 2006.

At least 57 Palestinians were injured on Friday when Israeli occupation forces stormed the Al-Aqsa compound, medics said. Hundreds of Palestinians were rounded up and arrested.

(MEMO, PC, Social Media)

2:26 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Major Hospital in Jerusalem Closes Doors Due to Financial Crisis

Al-Makassed hospital in Jerusalem. (Photo: via Facebook)

Al-Makassed Hospital, the largest Palestinian hospital in occupied East Jerusalem, has closed its doors to all except emergency patients due to its ongoing financial crisis, Arab48.com reported on Monday.

The union of workers at Al-Makassed Hospital said that staff were unable to carry out their duties due to “the continuing financial crisis and not receiving their salaries.”

The hospital itself added that the Palestinian Authority has not paid staff salaries for several months. It pointed out that there had been an agreement after a previous strike and the PA has backtracked on its pledges.

The hospital’s workers were expected to gather in front of the building on Tuesday morning and then protest in front of the PA ministry of finance.

“Several PA officials pledged to pay the salaries for the hospital on Sunday,” the hospital explained, “but nothing happened.”

A proposal from the PA to secure part of the payments which are outstanding, including salaries, does not meet the daily needs of the hospital, said officials.

Al-Makassed administrators blamed PA Minister of Finance Shouky Bshara for the deteriorating situation. They called upon him to stand up for his responsibilities towards Jerusalem.

The amount owed to the hospital by the PA is said to be $47 million, most of which comes from covering patient referrals from the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

(MEMO, PC, Social Media)

1:37 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Palestinians Demonstrate outside Ofer Prison to Protest Trial of 14-Year-Old Boy

Athal al-Azzeh, 14, has been detained by Israeli occupation forces near Bethlehem. (Photo: via Social Media)

Family and friends of 14-year-old Athal al-Azzeh demonstrated on Tuesday outside Ofer military and detention camp to protest the trial of their son, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Azzeh’s father, Ahmad, said the Israeli soldiers detained his son on April 15, after beating him up when he was on his way to his grandmother’s house in the al-Azzeh refugee camp in Bethlehem.

The interrogators are pressuring him, by all means, to get him to confess to things he did not do, said the father, explaining that his son is being interrogated in the absence of any member of his family or a lawyer.

He added that his son is exhausted and has been deprived of sleep as he undergoes long interrogation after midnight.

According to the Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners Affairs Commission, there are 160 Palestinian minors held in Israeli prisons.

(WAFA, PC, Social Media)

1:18 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Israeli Forces Kill 20-Year-Old Palestinian Youth in Jericho

Ahmad Oweidat, 20, was killed by Israeli forces near Jericho. (Photo: via Social Media)

A Palestinian youth succumbed on Tuesday to the wounds he sustained after being shot by Israeli forces in the refugee camp of Aqabat Jabr near Jericho, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health said that Ahmad Ibrahim Oweidat, 20, was shot with a live bullet in the head earlier Tuesday during an Israeli special force military raid into the camp, to the south of Jericho.

During the raid, Israeli forces injured three other Palestinian youths, including one who is reported to be critically injured.

The Fatah movement in Jericho declared a general strike in the district.

(WAFA, PC, Social Media)

9:05 am | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

UN Experts Call on Governments to Resume Funding for Palestinian Groups Labeled as ‘Terrorist Organizations’

Al-Haq director Shawan Jabarin hands evidence of Israeli crimes in Gaza to ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda in November 2015. (Photo: via Al-Haq)

UN human rights experts on Monday called on the international community to take immediate and effective steps to protect and sustain the six Palestinian civil society groups that were designated as ‘terrorist organizations’ by the Government of Israel last October.

“Israel’s disturbing designation of these organizations as ‘terrorist organizations’ has not been accompanied by any public concrete and credible evidence,” the human rights experts said in a statement, a copy of which was sent to The Palestine Chronicle.

“We note that the information presented by Israel has also failed to convince a number of governments and international organizations that have traditionally provided funding for the indispensable work of these six organizations.”

In October 2021, the UN experts denounced Israel’s designation of six Palestinian civil society organizations – Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International – Palestine, the Union of Agricultural Work Committees, and the Union of Palestinian Women Committees – as terrorist organizations.

Israel’s designation enables it to close the organizations, seize their assets, end their work and charge their leadership and staff with terrorist offenses.

“Israel has had six months to substantiate its accusations and it has failed to deliver,” the experts said.

“We call on the funding governments and international organizations to swiftly conclude that Israel has not established its allegations and to announce that they will continue to financially and politically support these organizations and the communities and groups they serve.”

Although Israel has not substantiated its allegations publicly or to the funding governments and international organizations, several of the funders have delayed their contributions to the Palestinian organizations while they investigate these claims.

The European Union has formally suspended its funding for two of these organizations. This has undermined the work of these Palestinian organizations and has had an incalculable impact on the communities they support. There has been a lack of clarity about the duration of these steps, the experts said.

“We are deeply disturbed by Israel’s apparent misuse of anti-terrorism legislation to attack some of the leading civil society organizations in Palestine. Such misuse must be rejected and countered,” the experts said.

“The United Nations has been very clear that the drafting and application of anti-terrorism laws have to be rigorously consistent with international law and human rights protections, including the principles of legal certainty, necessity, proportionality, the rule of law, and non-discrimination.”

The human rights experts called upon the international community to publicly conclude that Israel has not substantiated its allegations against the six organizations; resume, continue and even increase its financial and political support for the work of these six organizations; and demand that Israel retract the designations and cease its harassment of all Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights and civil society organizations which promote human rights and accountability in Israel and Palestine.

(The Palestine Chronicle, WAFA, Social Media)

5:27 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »

Human Rights Watch Calls for Release of Gaza Humanitarian Worker Mohammad al-Halabi

Mohammed al-Halabi, World Vision’s Operations Manager in the Gaza Strip. (Photo: Family Album, Supplied)

Human Rights Watch urged on Monday Israeli authorities to immediately release Mohammad al-Halabi, a humanitarian worker from Gaza detained for nearly six years, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Last February, the Israeli Supreme Court renewed al-Halabi’s detention for 90 days for the 23rd time.

Israeli prosecutors have charged al-Halabi, the 45-year-old head of the Gaza office of the Christian charity World Vision, with diverting tens of millions of dollars to Palestinian armed groups.

But after more than 160 hearings, the Israeli court has yet to convict him. The trial has been marred by severe due process violations, including keeping secret much of the supposed evidence against him. Audits by donor governments and independent firms World Vision hired have found no wrongdoing.

“It makes a mockery of due process and the most basic fair trial notions to hold someone for nearly six years in pretrial detention based largely on secret evidence,” said Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine director at Human Rights Watch. “

The Israeli Supreme Court’s 23 renewals of al-Halabi’s detention are yet another marker of how they all too often rubber-stamp government policy that tramples on Palestinians’ rights.”

Because al-Halabi’s prolonged detention before and during proceedings so grossly violates the guarantees under international human rights law to a trial “within a reasonable time,” he should be immediately released, Human Rights Watch said.

Israeli authorities arrested al-Halabi, a father of five, in June 2016 at the Erez Crossing between Gaza and Israel, as he was returning from a meeting at World Vision’s office in Jerusalem. Al-Halabi’s whereabouts were not revealed for weeks.

(WAFA, PC, Social Media)

1:39 pm | Posted in Blog | News | Read More »
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