MADA: the most violations against Palestinian journalists were in Jerusalem
4 October 2010
The Israeli occupation force’s attacks against the journalists in Jerusalem were the biggest during last September. Where they attacked Palestine TV correspondent Nader Baybres, TV producer Fared Saleh, they also attacked Quds Net correspondent Diala Jwehan in three separate accidents. The Israeli forces also arrested four journalists, they are: WAFA and APA agencies photographer Muammar Awad, the photographer and reporter of Radar newspaper Nour Karameh, Panet news website correspondent Amir Abed Rabbo, and Middle East Agency for News Photography photographer Imran Alrashaq,
In addition the Israeli occupation forces detained the AP photographer Nasser Shyoukhi during his coverage to a weekly march in Beit Omar in Hebron, then they attacked him violently after a week in the same place.
Concerning to the violations from the Palestinian side; a meeting via video conference between the Palestinian journalists in the Gaza Strip and the President of the International Federation of Journalists Jim Boumelha and his delegation was prevented by members of the internal security of the dismissed government. Also unknown people raided Alhayat Aljadedah correspondent Nufouth Al-Bakri’s house in Khanyounis city in the south of Gaza strip and stole her office tools.
The Palestinian intelligence services also arrested Alquds TV correspondent Mamdouh Hamamrah in the beginning of September then they released him after three days, and they arrested him again on 18 September 2010. The PIS also summoned the correspondent of Alquds TV Abdullah Adawi to investigation in their headquarters in Bethlehem.
The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) condemns all attacks against Palestinian journalists, also stresses on the need for the international community intervened to obtain guarantees for the protection of journalists from the Israeli occupation forces that continue to abuse them. MADA also calls the concerned authorities in the West Bank and Gaza to respect the freedom of expression which guaranteed in article 19 of the Palestinian Basic law, and to release the arrested journalists.
Details of violations:
(1 Sep) Alquds TV correspondent Mamdouh Hamamrah was arrested by the Palestinian intelligence service in Bethlehem, on Wednesday, 1 September 2010. His father said that members of the Palestinian intelligence service came to their house at 11:30 pm and took him with them; they said that they want to interrogate his son for an hour, but he didn’t come back to the home. Hamamrah’s father added: “Next morning I went to their headquarters to ask about him, so they told me that he was detained. The journalist Hamamrah was released on Saturday 4 September 2010 at 11:30 pm. After his release Hamamrah said that he was not charged during his arrest, and all the time he was being interrogated about his work in Alquds TV.
(15 Sep) A video conference meeting between Palestinian journalists in the Gaza Strip and the President of the International Federation of Journalists Jim Boumelha and his delegation was prevented on Wednesday 15 September 2010, by the security agencies of the dismissed Government in Gaza. A member of the Secretariat of the Palestinian journalists syndicate in Gaza Tahsen Astal said that they had invited about 227 journalists from Gaza to the meeting, and they booked a hall from Al Azhar University. After that some parties from the dismissed government in Gaza called the university to prevent and cancel the meeting. Astal added: "The government media office in Gaza issued a statement justifying the cancellation of the meeting because we didn’t get permission for holding it, and because it was a secret meeting. But it is not true because we're not used to obtain permits to hold our meetings, whether from the old or from the current authorities".
(18 Sep) Alquds TV correspondent Mamdouh Hamamrah was summoned then detained by the Palestinian intelligence service in Bethlehem, on Saturday 18 September 2010. Hamamrah’s father said that his son received a call for investigation by members belonging to the Palestinian intelligence service, and when he went there, they immediately arrested him. Hamamrah is under arrest until now (4 October) without any formal indictment against him
(18 Sep) The French Agency photographer Nasser Shyoukhi was detained by Israeli occupation forces while he was covering a weekly march in Beit Omar in Hebron city, on Saturday 18 September 2010. According to Shyoukhi he said that he went to cover a weekly march in Beit Omar, and since the moment of his arrive to the area, an Israeli soldier approached, handcuffed and ordered him to sit on the ground with two international activists until the end of the march, then the Israeli soldiers blindfolded their eyes and took them to an Israeli military camp near the settlement of "Karmi Tsur "and detained them for four hours, then they released him after the intervention of the Office of the French Agency.
(22 Sep) Al-Quds Net correspondent Diala Jwehan and the correspondent of Palestine TV Nader Baybres were attacked on Wednesday 22 September 2010, in Silwan area in Jerusalem, by the Israeli occupations forces. Jwehan said that she went to Silwan area in Jerusalem to cover the clashes erupted between Israeli forces and Palestinian youths, after Israeli citizen killed a Palestinian man from Silwan. During the covering the Israeli soldiers threw many tear gas bombs, one of the bombs hit Jwehan’s back, which caused her a loss of consciousness, bruising in her back and stomach burns as a result of inhalation of large gas quantities.
From his part, Baybres said that he was standing on a short distance from the Israeli army and away from the demonstrators to cover the clashes, during that one of the soldiers threw tear gas bomb deliberately on him, so it hit his left leg so he fell down on the ground, which caused bruises in the backbone of his leg.
(22 Sep) WAFA and APA agencies photographer Muammar Awad, the photographer and reporter of Radar newspaper Nour Karameh, Panet news website correspondent Amir Abed Rabbo, and Middle East Agency for News Photography photographer Imran Alrashaq, were arrested during their coverage to the evening prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. The journalist Awad said: "I was with my colleagues covering the evening prayer at Al Aqsa Mosque, during that the occupation soldiers and Israeli Special Forces violently attacked the worshipers, so we pictured that. At the end of the prayer, we came out from “Asbat Gate", members of the Israeli security arrested us immediately. They detained us for a while in front of the peoples whose were in the area, and despite the intervention of the rest of journalists to release us they refused, then they took us to investigation center in “Al-Khalil Gate" area, where we were under investigation from 4:30 PM until 1:30 AM, then the Israeli officer received a call to release us. So we were released after receiving a formal decision that banned us from entering the Old City area in Jerusalem for fifteen days, and if we enter the area, we will pay five thousand shekels, and arrest for six months".
(22 Sep) Alhayat Aljadedah correspondent Nufouth Al-Bakri’s house was raided in Khanyounis in the south of Gaza Strip. The accident took place on Wednesday 22 September 2010, by unknown people. Al-Bakri said that the police of the dismissed government called her on Wednesday morning at 1:30 AM, and told her that they found her house door opened, when she went there the door was broken and most of her media tools were stolen such as Fax, Phone, her Agenda and some of press papers. Al-Bakri added: “the raid reason wasn’t for robbery, because the missing stuffs are only that I used them for the journalism work, and there were a lot of valuable things in my house but they still inside it
(24 Sep) Al-Quds Net correspondent Diala Jwehan and the TV producer Fared Saleh were attacked on Friday 24 September 2010, after making and interview in one of the houses in Al-Essawiyeh area in Jerusalem. Jwehan said that she went at 8:00 pm, accompanied by television producer Fared Saleh for an interview with the family of a Palestinian child who died because of inhalation of the gas grenade thrown by Israeli occupation forces. After they came out of the house, members of the Israeli police were in the region. Jwehan and her colleague heard the police speaking with each other that they want to fire bullets and tear gas at them, and then they have shed laser light over their bodies and shot bullets in the air and around them, which caused them a huge horror. Jwehan added: "In this moment we believed that we will die, it was a very frightening situation; I can’t stand on my legs."
(25 Sep) AP photographer Nasser Shyoukhi was attacked by the Israeli occupation forces, while he was covering a weekly march of Beit Omar in Hebron city, on Saturday 25 September 2010. Shyoukhi told MADA a details about his attack by saying: "I went to cover the weekly march of Beit Omar in Hebron, after the end of the march, one of the soldiers approached me and said: go from here, I told him I will go now. I walked a few meters, then two Israeli border guards attacked me and put me on the ground and started beating me roughly all over my body. After that they handcuffed and took me to a nearby wall of the settlement of "Karmi Tsur" which close to the region, there I was detained about two hours, during that all the soldiers whose were standing there, beat and insulted me. After that they released me, then I was taken to Al Ahli hospital in Hebron, the doctors said that I’m suffering from broken of two feathers of my rib cage and bruises all over my body.
(30 September) Alquds TV correspondent Abdullah Adawi was summoned to investigation by the Palestinian intelligence service in Bethlehem, on Thursday 30 September 2010. According to Adawi he said that members of the intelligence service came with a civilian car to his house in the town of Husan near Bethlehem, at 6:00 pm on Saturday, 25 September 2010, and asked him to come on Thursday at 10:00 am to their headquarters in Bethlehem, and when he went there they questioned him about his work and his articles for two hours, then he was released.
Contact:
Riham Abu Aita
Public Relation Officer
Ramallah
riham@madacenter.org
HYPERLINK "http://www.madacenter.org" www.madacenter.org
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