Latest news with #Adalah
Khaleej Times
12-04-2025
- Khaleej Times
Watch: Palestinian jailed as teen for stabbing Israelis freed after 9 years
A Palestinian sentenced as a teen for taking part in a knife attack against two Israelis was freed Thursday after spending more than nine years in jail, a lawyer said. Ahmad Manasra, now 23, was just 13 when he carried out the attack in October 2015 in Israeli-occupied and annexed east Jerusalem. "He was released today," said Nareman Shehadeh Zoabi, an attorney for rights group Adalah and part of a legal team representing him. "His family met him and now the family is taking the time with him and to be able to stay quiet for some time alone with Ahmed," she told AFP. Manasra was originally sentenced in 2016 to 12 years in prison, but his term was later reduced to nine and a half years by Israel's supreme court. AFPTV footage on Thursday showed Manasra, wearing a surgical mask and with his hair closely cropped, at an Israeli security facility in Jerusalem alongside his father. Watch the video below: He was found guilty of the attempted murder of a 20-year-old man and a 13-year-old boy in the Jewish settlement neighbourhood of Pisgat Zeev in east Jerusalem, his lawyer said at the time. He carried out the attack with his cousin Hassan, who was shot dead by security forces on the spot. Between Manasra's conviction and sentencing, Israeli law was amended to allow civilian courts to convict children as young as 12 for "terrorist offences". Manasra, an east Jerusalem resident, was the youngest Palestinian to be convicted by an Israeli civilian court at the time. Zoabi, the lawyer at Adalah legal centre, said her team had worked to secure Manasra's early release in 2022 but failed to secure it. Among other things, his health had declined drastically after he spent nearly two years in solitary confinement. Rights group Amnesty International had also raised concerns at the time, warning of his deteriorating psychological condition. "Ahmad Manasra's release today is a huge relief for him and for his family, but nothing can undo the years of injustice, abuse, trauma and ill-treatment he endured behind bars," Amnesty regional director Heba Morayef said in a statement on Thursday. Manasra initially pleaded not guilty, saying he had intended to frighten the Israelis, not kill them. The stabbing incident came at the beginning of a months-long wave of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming attacks.
Middle East Eye
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Middle East Eye
Israeli police interrogate Palestinian comedian over stand-up shows
Israeli police briefly detained and questioned Palestinian artist and comedian Nidal Badarneh on Monday over his stand-up shows, according to his family. His home in Haifa was raided, and the Palestinian citizens of Israel was taken in for investigation under the pretext of "posing a danger to the public," the family told Arab48 news outlet. The arrest followed calls from far-right Israeli groups to cancel his shows, including one in Nazareth last Friday. Israeli officers also reportedly pressured gallery owners to cancel his performances without legal grounds. Another show in Haifa was cancelled by police to "preserve the safety of the audience," with far-right groups claiming the show addressed Israeli detainees in Gaza. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters His family believes the arrest is part of a broader campaign against Badarneh, fuelled by far-right incitement. They accused police of targeting him through threats to cancel his shows. "This arrest comes as a result of a fierce fascist media incitement campaign against Nidal and the comedic artistic content he presents," they said. 'The police anywhere in the world don't engage in this form of 'bullying,' but it seems they're acting based on the incitement of the far-right' - Nidal Badarneh, comedian Badarneh had previously spoken to Arab48, saying Israeli police warned him not to perform in Nazareth. He criticised the police for bypassing the law and acting as a "body separate from the law". "They told me word for word, 'It's not good for you to come to Nazareth, and if you hold the show, we will take action and not allow you to do so,'' the comedian said. "The police anywhere in the world don't engage in this form of 'bullying,' but it seems they're acting based on the incitement of the far-right. The bans on the shows in Haifa and Nazareth have no legal basis." Badarneh plans to take legal action, working with Adalah, a Haifa-based legal centre, to protect his rights and continue his work. The centre sent an urgent letter to the Israeli attorney general last week urging intervention to stop the targeting of Badarneh. "The police have recently been exploiting this charge extensively to investigate violations of freedom of expression illegally and to avoid obtaining the required approvals from the Public Prosecution,' the centre said. Silencing dissenting voices Adalah also highlighted that the "unlawful" political persecution of Badarneh was part of a wider effort to suppress Palestinian expression in Israel since 7 October 2023. This has led to nearly 200 incitement charges and numerous illegal arrests aimed at intimidating artists and halting their performances. Palestinian citizens of Israel brace for extremist attacks as incitement spreads Read More » On Wednesday, Israeli police raided the home of a journalist and former game announcer for the Bnei Sakhnin football club, Saeed Hassanain. The Palestinian citizen of Israel was arrested on suspicion of "incitement" after criticising Israel and the army's actions during an interview with Al-Aqsa TV. He stated, 'The IDF is an occupying army, Israel is the enemy." Hassanain denounced Palestinian citizens of Israel who enlisted in the army, calling them "weak-minded". He also praised Hamas for how they treated captives held in Gaza, saying: "The Islamic Resistance acted with complete humanity according to Islamic law and proved to the world that Hamas preserves human dignity and respects the women who were captured on 7 October. Hamas defended them according to religious teachings, Islamic law, and Palestinian conscience." Hassanain's remarks caused public anger in Israel, leading to his dismissal as the Bnei Sakhnin's announcer and his arrest.
The Guardian
07-02-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Israeli soldier sentenced to seven months for assaults on Gaza detainees
An Israeli soldier has been found guilty of severe assaults of Palestinian detainees from Gaza, the first conviction for abuse in a system where dozens of people have died in custody and whistleblowers say torture and violence is rife. Israel Hajabi, 25, repeatedly attacked bound and blindfolded detainees with his fists, a baton and his assault rifle, a military court found, describing his actions as 'serious and severe'. On one day alone, 5 June last year, at the Sde Teiman detention centre he beat two men 15 times. The assaults were committed between January and June 2024 when he was guarding detainees from Gaza. They were captured on video and continued as targets cried out in pain. Hajabi also forced detainees to make animal noises and repeat humiliating phrases. Hajabi was sentenced to seven months after a plea deal, which rights groups said was too short to serve as a deterrent. They questioned why authorities had not identified masked soldiers seen in videos of the attacks or prosecuted other cases of documented violent abuse against prisoners and detainees. 'It is difficult to ignore the fact that the sentence does not constitute a significant deterrent,' the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, an NGO, said in a statement. '[The attacks] constitute serious abuse that requires a much more severe punishment. It is important to remember that there were other people involved in the incident who were not brought to justice, and many other cases of abuse have not been investigated at all to this day.' Hajabi was detained in the summer at the same time as nine other Israeli soldiers, who face allegations of sexual abuse so violent it left a detainee in critical condition. Their arrests prompted an invasion of two military bases by politicians and demonstrators, mostly representing far-right parties, who were furious about the arrests and described the men as heroes. Pre-indictment hearings were held in this case in November, the Jerusalem Post reported, citing sources who denied political considerations had caused delays. Hassan Jabareen, the director of the Palestinian rights group Adalah, said: '[Hajabi's] case, including the punishment, indicates that Israel has a policy of impunity when it comes to their soldiers. Whatever they do, at most they will have a light sentence.' He said Palestinian citizens of Israel had been handed longer jail terms for posts on social media. Violence, extreme hunger, humiliation and other abuse of Palestinian prisoners has been normalised across Israel's jail system, according to interviews with released prisoners. Mistreatment now so systemic that the rights group B'Tselem says it must be considered a policy of 'institutionalised abuse'. Detainees from Gaza are particularly vulnerable. The Israeli NGO HaMoked described the conditions in which these detainees were held as 'a mass enforced disappearance', because they are held incommunicado in unknown locations, without legal proceedings or contact with a lawyer. By early December, at least 38 Gaza residents detained in Israel had died in custody, Haaretz reported. Sde Teiman camp in the Negev desert was set up as a temporary detention centre for holding Palestinians from Gaza after the cross-border Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.
The Guardian
30-01-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Unrwa staff forced to leave Israel after ban comes into effect
International staff working for the UN's main agency serving Palestinians have been forced to leave Israel, after its ban on the agency came into effect. As the UN flag was still flying above the headquarters building in Jerusalem, Palestinian staff were not present at the site over security concerns amid a planned 'celebration' by Israeli rightwing groups outside the compound. While Unrwa said on Thursday that it would continue working in Gaza and the West Bank for as long as possible, it added it had received no communications from Israel on how the ban would be implemented – most crucially over the delivery of aid to Gaza. The Israeli ban went ahead on Thursday after the country's supreme court rejected a petition by Palestinian human rights group Adalah contesting the new law prohibiting Unrwa. The court did note that the legislation 'prohibits Unrwa activity only on the sovereign territory of the state of Israel', but did not prohibit such activity in Gaza and the West Bank. The ban does apply, however, to Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, where Unrwa has a field headquarters for its operations in the West Bank. About 25 international staff left Israel on Wednesday after Israel had refused to issue visas or extend existing ones. International staff make up about 2% of the agency's workforce. 'The headquarters is still there, and flag is still up,' said Juliette Touma, an Unrwa spokesperson. 'It's a UN compound which means it must be protected. We don't have plans to close our operations,' she said, adding that their work in the West Bank and Gaza was continuing. 'But we are in the dark. We have not received any instructions from Israel how the ban will be enforced beyond being told to vacate.' The most serious feared impact is on the delivery of aid to Gaza, where Unrwa is the largest agency delivering aid and whose trucks cross into Gaza from Israel requiring coordination with the Israeli authorities. 'If [the ban means] no contact at an operational level then the fate of the ceasefire is in serious jeopardy because we are the most serious player and biggest deliverer of aid,' said Touma. Officially Unrwa is now banned from operating on Israeli soil and contact between it and Israeli officials is also forbidden, although it is unclear what this might mean in practical terms. Set up in 1949 under a mandate from the UN general assembly, the agency has provided support for Palestinian refugees around the Middle East for over 70 years, but has long faced attacks from Israeli officials. Its offices and staff in Israel play a major role in the provision of healthcare and education to Palestinians, including those living in the Gaza Strip, which has been devastated by the war between Israel and Hamas. The agency's chief, Philippe Lazzarini, said Unrwa's capacity to distribute aid 'far exceeds that of any other entity' describing Israel's actions as a 'relentless assault … harming the lives and future of Palestinians across the occupied Palestinian territory'. Israel has long campaigned against Unrwa claiming its existence has prolonged the conflict between Israeli and Palestinians. The hostility intensified after Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, with accusations that some Unrwa employees participated in the assault. Despite repeated claims by Israel that Unrwa had been infiltrated by Hamas on a large scale, a series of investigations, including one led by former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna, found some 'neutrality-related issues' at Unrwa, but stressed Israel had not provided evidence for its headline allegation.
