Israel releases Palestinian who took part in attack aged 13 and developed mental illness in prison
Israel on Thursday released a Palestinian who took part in an attack when he was 13 and developed schizophrenia in prison as requests for early release were denied.
Israel says Ahmad Manasra is a terrorist who tried to kill Jews his own age. Palestinians accuse Israel of subjecting a child to harsh incarceration that led to serious and potentially permanent mental illness. His lawyer, Khaled Zabarqa, said he was released after completing his nine-and-a-half-year sentence.
In 2015, Manasra, then 13, and his 15-year-old cousin rampaged through a Jewish settlement in east Jerusalem with knives. His cousin, Hassan, critically wounded a 13-year-old Israeli boy who was leaving a candy store and stabbed an Israeli man before being shot dead by police.
Ahmad was run over by a car, beaten and taunted by Israeli passers-by. A graphic video of Ahmad lying in the street, bleeding from the head while Israelis taunted him, garnered millions of views.
He was later convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to nine and a half years in prison. Doctors said he developed schizophrenia in solitary confinement and tried to harm himself and others.
Appeals to Israel's Supreme Court for his early release were repeatedly denied. The courts ruled that he was ineligible, regardless of age or mental condition, because he was convicted of terrorism.
Zarbarqa said he did not have immediate information about Manasra's condition after his release, but said he was with his parents.
'We know in jail he's been very ill. We're waiting to know his health situation now,' Zabarqa said.
Authorities first moved Manasra to isolation in November 2021, following a scuffle with another inmate. In interviews the following year, his family and lawyers said he was locked in a small cell for 23 hours a day and suffered from paranoia and delusions that kept him from sleeping. His lawyer said Manasra had tried to slit his wrists.
His family said he was transferred to the psychiatric wing of another prison every few months, where doctors gave him injections to stabilize him. A physician who was allowed to visit him when he was 18 diagnosed him with schizophrenia and attributed it to the toll of being in prison, warning that continued incarceration could lead to permanent disability.
The Prisons Authority on Thursday declined to comment on the specific conditions under which he had been held, saying all prisoners are held in accordance with Israeli and international law and that any allegations of abuse are investigated.
Rights groups say conditions inside Israeli prisons have become far more harsh since Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack ignited the war in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian prisoners released during a recent ceasefire often appeared gaunt and ill, and many went straight to local hospitals for treatment.
The Israeli ministry in charge of prisons has boasted that it has reduced the conditions of security prisoners to the bare minimum required by Israeli law.
A teenager from the occupied West Bank who was held in an Israeli prison for six months without being charged died last month after collapsing in unclear circumstances, becoming the first Palestinian under 18 to die in Israeli detention.
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Lidman reported from Tel Aviv, Israel.
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Belfast Telegraph
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Israel accused the group who were aboard the boat of supporting Hamas terrorists GET OUT Greta Thunberg arrives on dry land & 'will be deported' after Israel seized 'Freedom Flotilla' stunt ship & twisted crew GRETA Thunberg has arrived on dry land and is to likely be deported after Israel seized the "Freedom Flotilla" stunt ship. The climate campaigner, 22, alongside 11 other activists on board, is expected to appear in court on Tuesday morning having been taken to the Israeli port city of Ashdod. Advertisement 10 Greta Thunberg has arrived on dry land Credit: IsraelMFA 10 Greta Thunberg posted on social media that she had been kidnapped by the Israeli military Credit: Instagram 10 A photo posted on Telegram purportedly showing activists with their hands up on board the Madleen Credit: Freedom Flotilla Coalition Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed on X: "The 'Selfie Yacht' docked at Ashdod Port a short while ago. 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Advertisement And all of those detained will be made to watch a screening of video footage showing innocents including children being slaughter by Hamas savages during the attacks. The 'selfie yacht' operated by the pro-Palestinian Freedom Flotilla Coalition was said to be "safely making its way to the shores of Israel", Israel's Foreign Minsitry said. Israel issues warning to Greta's 'Freedom Flotilla' as eco-pest SAILS to Gaza All passengers were safe and unharmed and activists handed sandwiches and water before the vessel docked at the southern Israeli port of Ashdod. The boat was carrying a "tiny amount of aid" on board - which will be sent to Gaza. Advertisement Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said that he has instructed the Israeli Defence Forces to screen footage of the 7 October attacks as soon as they arrive. The disturbing footage - titled "Bearing Witness" - shows innocent people being massacred and mutilated. And all the footage was taken from the Hamas terrorists' bodycams as they filmed their massacre. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said early on Monday that Israeli forces had boarded the charity vessel. Advertisement Shortly before the FFC statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry posted a video on X showing the Israeli Navy communicating with the Madleen over a loudspeaker, urging it to change course. "The maritime zone off the coast of Gaza is closed to naval traffic as part of a legal naval blockade," a soldier said. 10 Greta Thunberg is offered a sandwich by an Israeli soldier 10 The Madleen began its journey to deliver aid to Gaza last Sunday but could be facing Israeli fury upon its arrival Advertisement 10 Thunberg sits aboard the aid ship Madleen, which left the Italian port of Catania on June 1 to travel to Gaza Credit: Reuters 10 Gaza has been hammered by the IDF as it aims to wipe out Hamas Credit: Getty "If you wish to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, you are able to do so through the (Israeli) port of Ashdod." The campaigners had said they are hoping to 'break the siege' and raise 'international awareness' of the humanitarian crisis on the Gaza Strip. Advertisement But Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant issued a warning as the vessel entered the final stretch of its journey, saying: 'You should turn back – because you will not reach Gaza.' Thunberg, 22, has posted on social media with a Palestine flag and wearing a keffiyeh scarf while on the journey. Travelling alongside her is Rima Hassan, a French member of the European parliament of Palestinian descent. She has previously been barred from entering Israel due to her outspoken criticism of the country's policies towards Palestinians. Advertisement Organisers claim the voyage is 'a non-violent, direct action to challenge Israel's illegal siege" - and is carrying essential supplies to a population at risk of famine. Israel imposed a near-total blockade on Gaza in late 2023, following Hamas's horror massacre on southern Israel on October 7. Though some limited aid has been allowed in since last month, aid agencies claim it is nowhere near enough. Ahead of the journey, Thunberg said through tears: "We are doing this because, no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying. Advertisement "Because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity." CONTROVERSIAL CREW The flotilla's latest voyage follows a failed attempt in May, when another of its vessels was struck by two drones in international waters off Malta. The group accused Israel of being behind the attack. Despite the risks, activists aboard the Madleen have said they plan to enter Gaza's territorial waters as early as Sunday. Advertisement The vessel's controversial crew includes figures who have openly supported terrorist organizations and have made inflammatory public statements. Brazilian activist Thiago Avila attended the funeral of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, calling the terrorist a "beloved" leader and a "martyr". 10 Thunberg with part of the crew of the ship headed to the Strip Credit: Getty 10 Thiago Ávila (L) hailed the former leader of terrorist group Hezbollah Advertisement 10 Yasemin Acar is among the extremist crew Avila said he was "very honoured" and "very happy" to attend, and described the funeral as something that "amazed him". He wrote that Nasrallah was an "important figure" who "inspired people all over the world". Also on board was Yasemin Acar from Berlin, who reportedly danced as Iranian rockets rained down on Israel and once told a white woman at a protest: 'You're a white person, you shouldn't tell us what to do.' Advertisement French journalist Omar Faiad, of Al-Jazeera, sparked outrage for comparing the IDF to Nazis. On X, he wrote: 'The Israeli army resembles the Nazi army,' and claimed: 'Israel is committing a new Holocaust in Gaza.' Rima Hassan, meanwhile, previously tweeted: 'Kfir, Ariel, and Shiri Bibas were killed by an Israeli attack,' despite Hamas being responsible for their abduction and deaths. She was also seen at a protest where demonstrators chanted: 'We die for jihad.' Advertisement And it included included a London-based Palestinian named in Parliament in 2023 as being a London-based Hamas operative. Zaher Birawi was at the launch of the Madleen and live streamed from the dock in Greece and is chair of the International Committee to Break the siege of Gaza. Birawi, 62, has been photographed with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and runs UK-registered charity, Education Aid for Palestinians, which has raised more than £3 million since 2017. Irish Game of Thrones star Liam Cunningham was also on the boat. Advertisement
