15 july 2017
Palestinian detainee Shireen Issawi is currently being held in isolation in the Jalameh interrogation center since 22 June 2017, when the Damon prison administration stormed the women prisoners’ section and assaulted them, reported Palestinian lawyer Hanan al-Khatib. Issawi, of the Jerusalem village of al-Eeesawiyya, has been detained since 3 June, 2014, and is serving a four-year sentence on allegations of assisting Palestinian detainees and their families to provide money to their canteen (prison store) accounts inside Israeli prisons.
Issawi is the sister of former long-term hunger striker and re-imprisoned released prisoner Samer Issawi as well as her brother Medhat Issawi, who was tried alongside Shireen on similar charges. She told al-Khatib that prison guards had beaten the prisoners with batons, including herself, and that she was bleeding with bruises all over her body after the incident. Tear gas was used on the prisoners in the area, and the prison director is the one who handcuffed the women with their hands behind their backs.
Some of her fellow women prisoners were also subject to sanctions by the prison administration, including administrative detainee Sabah Faraoun, Dalal Abu Hawa and Ataya Abu Aisha. Abu Hawa was isolated with Issawi in Jalameh, but has since been returned to Damon prison. She also said that after the attack, internal hearings were held for a number of prisoners, depriving them of family visits, denying them access to the canteen and subjecting them to financial penalties.
Issawi told al-Khatib that if the current situation continues, she will begin an open hunger strike. She noted that cameras are kept inside the room, violating the privacy of detainees, and that the room is tiny with the window covered in plastic. She is denied access to all electrical appliances in what she described as a dirty and filthy cell and is treated badly by racist jailers who scream and yell frequently.
She has been subject to solitary confinement five times so far in 2017. Palestinian women prisoners are mainly held in two prisons, Damon and HaSharon. Women prisoners in HaSharon have also reported poor conditions due to overcrowding, where some women have been forced to sleep on the floor without mattresses. HaSharon is where the 10 minor girls are imprisoned as well as prominent leaders Khalida Jarrar and Khitam Saafin, recently ordered to administrative detention without charge or trial.
Issawi is the sister of former long-term hunger striker and re-imprisoned released prisoner Samer Issawi as well as her brother Medhat Issawi, who was tried alongside Shireen on similar charges. She told al-Khatib that prison guards had beaten the prisoners with batons, including herself, and that she was bleeding with bruises all over her body after the incident. Tear gas was used on the prisoners in the area, and the prison director is the one who handcuffed the women with their hands behind their backs.
Some of her fellow women prisoners were also subject to sanctions by the prison administration, including administrative detainee Sabah Faraoun, Dalal Abu Hawa and Ataya Abu Aisha. Abu Hawa was isolated with Issawi in Jalameh, but has since been returned to Damon prison. She also said that after the attack, internal hearings were held for a number of prisoners, depriving them of family visits, denying them access to the canteen and subjecting them to financial penalties.
Issawi told al-Khatib that if the current situation continues, she will begin an open hunger strike. She noted that cameras are kept inside the room, violating the privacy of detainees, and that the room is tiny with the window covered in plastic. She is denied access to all electrical appliances in what she described as a dirty and filthy cell and is treated badly by racist jailers who scream and yell frequently.
She has been subject to solitary confinement five times so far in 2017. Palestinian women prisoners are mainly held in two prisons, Damon and HaSharon. Women prisoners in HaSharon have also reported poor conditions due to overcrowding, where some women have been forced to sleep on the floor without mattresses. HaSharon is where the 10 minor girls are imprisoned as well as prominent leaders Khalida Jarrar and Khitam Saafin, recently ordered to administrative detention without charge or trial.
Palestinian civic activist Mohammad Jadallah was placed under house arrest in his East Jerusalem home following his release from detention, according to reports.
Israeli police detained Jadallah on Friday, following a TV interview regarding the events in Jerusalem, in light of the police measures against al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City.
He was taken from his Beit Safafa home and held for several hours before he was released on a $2800 bail, and placed under house arrest for five days, according to WAFA.
He was also banned from giving press interviews for 30 days.
Israeli police detained Jadallah on Friday, following a TV interview regarding the events in Jerusalem, in light of the police measures against al-Aqsa Mosque and the Old City.
He was taken from his Beit Safafa home and held for several hours before he was released on a $2800 bail, and placed under house arrest for five days, according to WAFA.
He was also banned from giving press interviews for 30 days.
The Israeli police released, Friday, the Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, who was abducted earlier following the fatal shooting in Jerusalem that led to the death of three Palestinians and two Israeli officers. The Police also abducted 58 employees of the Waqf and Endowment Department.
The Mufti was attacked and taken prisoner by the soldiers and officers after he led Friday prayers in front of the Aqsa Mosque gates, after Israel decided to shut it down following the shooting.
He was released after being ordered to pay a 10.000 Israeli Shekels bail, after several hours of detention and interrogation.
The Waqf Department said that the soldiers also assaulted and abducted 58 of its employees following the shooting which took place in the courtyards of the Mosque.
The police interrogated the employees for several hours, and released 53 of them, while three employees, identified as Ayman al-Khailidi, Majed Tamimi and Tariq Sandouqa, were remanded for further interrogation until this coming Monday.
On Friday evening, the Israeli police detained Ahmad Jabarin, the father of Mohammad, after the police and soldiers stormed and ransacked the homes of the thee slain Palestinians.
In addition, undercover Israeli officers caused excessive damage to doors and bathrooms in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and assaulted many worships before forcing them away from the holy site.
In related news, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that the Al-Aqsa Mosque will remain closed until Sunday.
The decision came during a meeting held by Netanyahu with Israel’s Internal Security Minister, the Police Commissioner, and other military and police officials, in order to discuss the rising tension.
On his part, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, denounced the shooting attack in Al-Aqsa courtyard, and affirmed his rejection and condemnation to any sort of violence, committed by any individual or party, especially in holy sites.
Abbas also called on Netanyahu to reconsider the decision to close Al-Aqsa, and warned that any move that impacts holy and historic sites could drag the region into an endless cycle of escalation and violence.
Netanyahu told Abbas that the closure is temporary, and that there will be no changes on the current status quo of the holy sites.
The Palestinian Authority also contacted officials in Jordan, asking them to pressure Israel into reopening the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The closure this Friday, prevented prayers in the mosque for the first time in fifty years.
Jordan, the custodian of Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, contacted Israel and urged the immediate reopening of the holy site.
The Mufti was attacked and taken prisoner by the soldiers and officers after he led Friday prayers in front of the Aqsa Mosque gates, after Israel decided to shut it down following the shooting.
He was released after being ordered to pay a 10.000 Israeli Shekels bail, after several hours of detention and interrogation.
The Waqf Department said that the soldiers also assaulted and abducted 58 of its employees following the shooting which took place in the courtyards of the Mosque.
The police interrogated the employees for several hours, and released 53 of them, while three employees, identified as Ayman al-Khailidi, Majed Tamimi and Tariq Sandouqa, were remanded for further interrogation until this coming Monday.
On Friday evening, the Israeli police detained Ahmad Jabarin, the father of Mohammad, after the police and soldiers stormed and ransacked the homes of the thee slain Palestinians.
In addition, undercover Israeli officers caused excessive damage to doors and bathrooms in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and assaulted many worships before forcing them away from the holy site.
In related news, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that the Al-Aqsa Mosque will remain closed until Sunday.
The decision came during a meeting held by Netanyahu with Israel’s Internal Security Minister, the Police Commissioner, and other military and police officials, in order to discuss the rising tension.
On his part, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, denounced the shooting attack in Al-Aqsa courtyard, and affirmed his rejection and condemnation to any sort of violence, committed by any individual or party, especially in holy sites.
Abbas also called on Netanyahu to reconsider the decision to close Al-Aqsa, and warned that any move that impacts holy and historic sites could drag the region into an endless cycle of escalation and violence.
Netanyahu told Abbas that the closure is temporary, and that there will be no changes on the current status quo of the holy sites.
The Palestinian Authority also contacted officials in Jordan, asking them to pressure Israel into reopening the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The closure this Friday, prevented prayers in the mosque for the first time in fifty years.
Jordan, the custodian of Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound, contacted Israel and urged the immediate reopening of the holy site.
14 july 2017
Sheikh Mohammad Hussein
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced on Friday, after an evaluation session held by the Israeli security apparatuses, that the closure of al-Aqsa Mosque will continue until Sunday.
In a first response to a Palestinian shooting attack that led to killing two Israeli police officers near al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday morning, the Israeli authorities closed al-Aqsa Mosque and banned prayer there for the first time since 1969.
The Israeli police extended on Friday evening the detention of three guards of al-Aqsa Mosque to next Sunday.
A local source reported that the Israeli police released most of the staff of the Islamic Awqaf (endowment) Department who were detained in the morning but extended the detention of the three guards.
Earlier, the Islamic Awqaf Department affirmed that the Israeli police arrested 58 of its employees working at al-Aqsa Mosque and took them to al-Maskubiya detention center after confiscating their mobile phones and beating them.
The Public Relations Department in al-Aqsa Mosque said that a special Israeli force broke into the Mosque's toilets and wreaked havoc in them.
Because of the ban, thousands of Palestinian worshipers were forced to pray outside al-Aqsa Mosque, while the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, was arrested immediately after delivering his Friday sermon.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced on Friday, after an evaluation session held by the Israeli security apparatuses, that the closure of al-Aqsa Mosque will continue until Sunday.
In a first response to a Palestinian shooting attack that led to killing two Israeli police officers near al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday morning, the Israeli authorities closed al-Aqsa Mosque and banned prayer there for the first time since 1969.
The Israeli police extended on Friday evening the detention of three guards of al-Aqsa Mosque to next Sunday.
A local source reported that the Israeli police released most of the staff of the Islamic Awqaf (endowment) Department who were detained in the morning but extended the detention of the three guards.
Earlier, the Islamic Awqaf Department affirmed that the Israeli police arrested 58 of its employees working at al-Aqsa Mosque and took them to al-Maskubiya detention center after confiscating their mobile phones and beating them.
The Public Relations Department in al-Aqsa Mosque said that a special Israeli force broke into the Mosque's toilets and wreaked havoc in them.
Because of the ban, thousands of Palestinian worshipers were forced to pray outside al-Aqsa Mosque, while the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, was arrested immediately after delivering his Friday sermon.
The Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) extended the administrative detention, with neither charge nor trial, of the Palestinian MP Ahmed Mubarak for six additional months.
MP Mubarak was kidnapped by the occupation forces on January 16, 2017 and sentenced to a six-month administrative term, with neither charge nor trial.
Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council Mubarak was arrested six times by the occupation soldiers and has spent a total of over six years in Israeli jails.
MP Mubarak was kidnapped by the occupation forces on January 16, 2017 and sentenced to a six-month administrative term, with neither charge nor trial.
Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council Mubarak was arrested six times by the occupation soldiers and has spent a total of over six years in Israeli jails.
The Israeli occupation forces at daybreak Friday stormed the northern occupied West Bank province of Jenin and kidnapped an ex-prisoner after they aggressively assaulted his family.
According to local sources, dozens of Israeli soldiers stormed Jenin’s southern town of Kafr Ra’i and kidnapped the Palestinian ex-prisoner Bilal Diab, aged 33.
At the same time, the Israeli occupation soldiers attacked Diab’s family members and wreaked havoc on his home.
While in Israeli captivity sometime earlier, Diab had gone on an 87-day hunger strike.
The Israeli patrols further broke into the nearby Fahma and Araba towns and sealed off their main access roads with makeshift checkpoints.
According to local sources, dozens of Israeli soldiers stormed Jenin’s southern town of Kafr Ra’i and kidnapped the Palestinian ex-prisoner Bilal Diab, aged 33.
At the same time, the Israeli occupation soldiers attacked Diab’s family members and wreaked havoc on his home.
While in Israeli captivity sometime earlier, Diab had gone on an 87-day hunger strike.
The Israeli patrols further broke into the nearby Fahma and Araba towns and sealed off their main access roads with makeshift checkpoints.
The Israeli police arrested two Jerusalemite youths after shooting and injuring one of them in Jabal al-Mukaber area to the southeast of Occupied Jerusalem on Friday.
According to Quds Press, an Israeli police force broke into al-Farouq neighborhood, arrested a Palestinian youth and chased another who escaped from the scene.
Eyewitnesses said that the policemen tracked the fleeing youth and arrested him after shooting him in the foot.
Later, the Israeli police withdrew from the area and took the two youths to an unknown destination, they reported.
Tension has prevailed in Jerusalem and the surrounding areas since the morning hours amid tightened military restrictions imposed by the Israeli police in the wake of an anti-occupation shooting attack carried out by three Palestinian youths near al-Aqsa Mosque.
The three Palestinian young men were killed while two Israeli policemen were later pronounced dead.
Following the attack, the Israeli police prevented Palestinian worshipers from performing Friday prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque, closed its gates and announced it, along with the Old City and the surrounding area, a "closed military zone".
According to Quds Press, an Israeli police force broke into al-Farouq neighborhood, arrested a Palestinian youth and chased another who escaped from the scene.
Eyewitnesses said that the policemen tracked the fleeing youth and arrested him after shooting him in the foot.
Later, the Israeli police withdrew from the area and took the two youths to an unknown destination, they reported.
Tension has prevailed in Jerusalem and the surrounding areas since the morning hours amid tightened military restrictions imposed by the Israeli police in the wake of an anti-occupation shooting attack carried out by three Palestinian youths near al-Aqsa Mosque.
The three Palestinian young men were killed while two Israeli policemen were later pronounced dead.
Following the attack, the Israeli police prevented Palestinian worshipers from performing Friday prayer at al-Aqsa Mosque, closed its gates and announced it, along with the Old City and the surrounding area, a "closed military zone".
A Palestinian woman was detained Friday afternoon, along with her daughter, at al-Aqsa’s al-Silsila Gate for allegedly having a knife in her possession.
Eyewitnesses affirmed Israeli police stopped and searched the mother, Uhood Rizk, at al-Silsila Gate.
A knife was allegedly found in her bag.
Both the mother and the daughter were then taken handcuffed to a nearby police station for investigation, the sources added.
Eyewitnesses affirmed Israeli police stopped and searched the mother, Uhood Rizk, at al-Silsila Gate.
A knife was allegedly found in her bag.
Both the mother and the daughter were then taken handcuffed to a nearby police station for investigation, the sources added.
13 july 2017
The Israeli forces on Thursday kidnapped a Palestinian young man from territories occupied in 1948 (Green Line).
Local sources identified the youth as Munadhel Yakoub Enfi’at, the cousin of the slain Palestinian girl Nouf Enfi’at, who was fatally shot by the occupation soldiers on June 2 at Yabad checkpoint on claims that she attempted to stab an Israeli military patrol.
The abducted Palestinian is reportedly a native of Jenin’s southwestern town of Yabad, in the northern occupied West Bank.
Local sources identified the youth as Munadhel Yakoub Enfi’at, the cousin of the slain Palestinian girl Nouf Enfi’at, who was fatally shot by the occupation soldiers on June 2 at Yabad checkpoint on claims that she attempted to stab an Israeli military patrol.
The abducted Palestinian is reportedly a native of Jenin’s southwestern town of Yabad, in the northern occupied West Bank.
Jerusalemite lawyer Shireen Tareq al-Issawi, serving four years in Israeli jails, has been held in an isolated cell in Jalama prison since June 6, 2017, a lawyer reported on Thursday.
Lawyer Hanan al-Khatib, from the Prisoners’ Committee, said Shireen had been subjected to aggressive beating by the Damon prison authorities and sustained severe bruises and a hemorrhage before she was sent to an isolated cell in Jalama lock-up.
Other prisoners, including Ataya Abu Eisha, Sabah Fera’wn and Dalal Abu al-Hawa, among others, had also been beaten with metal chains. A number of detainees had been subjected to visit bans and forced to pay steep fines.
The Israeli prison authorities ruled that Issawi pay 700 shekels, be isolated for seven days, and be banned from family visits and the canteen for one month.
Issawi sounded distress signals over the abject detention conditions she has been made to endure in the isolated cell, inside which four cameras are installed, including one in the bathroom, violating prisoners’ privacy.
Issawi was further quoted as saying that the cell lacks ventilation and electricity kit and that the prison wardens have been mistreating her and shouting nonstop.
The detainee vowed to start an open-ended hunger strike in case the Israeli prison authorities do not meet her demands.
Issawi has been sentenced to solitary confinement five times since the start of 2017.
Lawyer Hanan al-Khatib, from the Prisoners’ Committee, said Shireen had been subjected to aggressive beating by the Damon prison authorities and sustained severe bruises and a hemorrhage before she was sent to an isolated cell in Jalama lock-up.
Other prisoners, including Ataya Abu Eisha, Sabah Fera’wn and Dalal Abu al-Hawa, among others, had also been beaten with metal chains. A number of detainees had been subjected to visit bans and forced to pay steep fines.
The Israeli prison authorities ruled that Issawi pay 700 shekels, be isolated for seven days, and be banned from family visits and the canteen for one month.
Issawi sounded distress signals over the abject detention conditions she has been made to endure in the isolated cell, inside which four cameras are installed, including one in the bathroom, violating prisoners’ privacy.
Issawi was further quoted as saying that the cell lacks ventilation and electricity kit and that the prison wardens have been mistreating her and shouting nonstop.
The detainee vowed to start an open-ended hunger strike in case the Israeli prison authorities do not meet her demands.
Issawi has been sentenced to solitary confinement five times since the start of 2017.
Israeli soldiers abducted, on Thursday at dawn, two young Palestinian men from Qalandia refugee camp, and one in Anata town, north and northeast of occupied East Jerusalem, and installed surveillance cameras overlooking several key areas in Hizma town, east of Jerusalem.
The soldiers invaded and ransacked many homes in Qalandia, interrogated several Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards, and abducted Bilal Sami and Abdullah Abdul-Rahman.
Furthermore, several army jeeps invaded Salam area, in Anata town, also searched many homes, and abducted a young man, identified as Samer Joulani.
The soldiers also invaded the ar-Ram town, north of Jerusalem, and closed several roads with military roadblocks, and withdrew later without abducting any Palestinian, or searching homes.
The soldiers invaded and ransacked many homes in Qalandia, interrogated several Palestinians while inspecting their ID cards, and abducted Bilal Sami and Abdullah Abdul-Rahman.
Furthermore, several army jeeps invaded Salam area, in Anata town, also searched many homes, and abducted a young man, identified as Samer Joulani.
The soldiers also invaded the ar-Ram town, north of Jerusalem, and closed several roads with military roadblocks, and withdrew later without abducting any Palestinian, or searching homes.
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Thursday at dawn, the al-‘Arroub refugee camp, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, searched many homes and abducted three Palestinians. The soldiers also summoned for interrogation three Palestinians from Surif and Kharas nearby towns.
The Hebron office of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said dozens of soldiers invaded al-‘Arroub refugee camp, before violently searching many homes, and abducted Moayyad Salem Sharbi, Mohammad Fathi Shehada and Mohammad Khaled al-Ballassi.
The soldiers caused excessive damage to many of the invaded homes, including the homes of the abducted Palestinians, and interrogated several residents.
Furthermore, the soldiers searched and ransacked many homes in Surif and Kharas towns, west of Hebron, before summoning Husam Abdul-Aziz Haddoush, 34, and Mohammad Jamal Zaya’ra, for interrogation in Etzion military base, north of Hebron.
In related news, the soldiers invaded Al-Quds Palestinian satellite TV news agency, and Ramsat news agency, in Hebron city, after smashing its main doors, and confiscated six computers, several hard discs and various types of equipment.
Ala Rimawi, the head of Al-Quds TV in Hebron, said the attack is part of ongoing violations and intimidation against the journalists and media outlets, and called for international protection to the Palestinian people, especially media agencies.
He said that Israeli soldiers have carried out at least 20 violations against media agencies and offices, in Hebron, in the last 18 months, in addition to shutting down many TV stations and media outlets.
The Hebron office of the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society (PPS) said dozens of soldiers invaded al-‘Arroub refugee camp, before violently searching many homes, and abducted Moayyad Salem Sharbi, Mohammad Fathi Shehada and Mohammad Khaled al-Ballassi.
The soldiers caused excessive damage to many of the invaded homes, including the homes of the abducted Palestinians, and interrogated several residents.
Furthermore, the soldiers searched and ransacked many homes in Surif and Kharas towns, west of Hebron, before summoning Husam Abdul-Aziz Haddoush, 34, and Mohammad Jamal Zaya’ra, for interrogation in Etzion military base, north of Hebron.
In related news, the soldiers invaded Al-Quds Palestinian satellite TV news agency, and Ramsat news agency, in Hebron city, after smashing its main doors, and confiscated six computers, several hard discs and various types of equipment.
Ala Rimawi, the head of Al-Quds TV in Hebron, said the attack is part of ongoing violations and intimidation against the journalists and media outlets, and called for international protection to the Palestinian people, especially media agencies.
He said that Israeli soldiers have carried out at least 20 violations against media agencies and offices, in Hebron, in the last 18 months, in addition to shutting down many TV stations and media outlets.
The Shin Bet, Israel’s internal intelligence agency, last Tuesday summoned Sheikh Ra’ed Salah, head of the Islamic Movement in the 1948 occupied lands, and his deputy Sheikh Kamal al-Khatib and interrogated them over issues related to the Aqsa Mosque and their banned organization.
Sheikh Khatib, who is also a senior official of the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Affairs, told Quds Press that he and Sheikh Salah received a summons ordering them to go to the police station in Nazareth city for an interview with the officer in charge.
Sheikh Khatib described their interrogation as part of the political persecution policy that has been pursued by Israel against the Islamic Movement before and after banning its activities in November 2015.
“I was questioned about the slogan “al-Aqsa in danger” and I said that al-Aqsa Mosque has always been endangered and targeted by the policies of Netanyahu’s right-wing government,” he said.
He also assured the Israeli officer that the Aqsa Mosque is an Islamic holy site belonging exclusively to the Muslims and that the Palestinian people would never recognize Israel’s measures against it.
Sheikh Khatib, who is also a senior official of the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Affairs, told Quds Press that he and Sheikh Salah received a summons ordering them to go to the police station in Nazareth city for an interview with the officer in charge.
Sheikh Khatib described their interrogation as part of the political persecution policy that has been pursued by Israel against the Islamic Movement before and after banning its activities in November 2015.
“I was questioned about the slogan “al-Aqsa in danger” and I said that al-Aqsa Mosque has always been endangered and targeted by the policies of Netanyahu’s right-wing government,” he said.
He also assured the Israeli officer that the Aqsa Mosque is an Islamic holy site belonging exclusively to the Muslims and that the Palestinian people would never recognize Israel’s measures against it.
