The occupied Palestinian territories (oPt) witnessed a serious escalation of attacks on journalists during last November, whether by the Israeli occupation forces or the Palestinian security services, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The Israeli actions in Jerusalem on the one hand, and the increasing rift between Fateh and Hamas on the other hand resulted in the increase in violations against freedom of expressions.
The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms (MADA) is expressing concern over the continued attacks on journalists, especially in Jerusalem by the Israeli occupation forces. Where this month ten journalists were attacked by the Israeli security forces and they are: Ma’mon siyam, Diala Jowayhan, Nader Baybres, Mahmoud Alian, Hamza Naajy, Sinan Abu Mizer, Karim Khader, and Atta Aoissat. And the attack on Abdul Rahim Al-Qusini and Arif Tufaha in Nablus city in West Bank.
MADA also expresses concern about the resurgence of the arrest of journalists in the West Bank by the Palestinian security agencies, especially the former employees of Al-Aqsa TV. Where a big group of journalists were arrested. And they are: Tarek Abu Zaid, Suleiman Amayreh, Osaid Amarneh, Ala Al-Titi, and Mohammad Shtewi. At the same time MADA welcomes the response of Dr.Salam Fayyad Government, to MADA’s appeal and some other Palestinian institutions that have followed MADA, by releasing some of the detained journalists.
MADA also expresses concern about the restriction on media freedoms in GAZA Strip, where the security agencies of the dismissed government prevented the International Federation of Journalists to hold a media conference; they also raided Ramattan agency headquarters and prevented them to hold a media conference. And also insulted Safwat Al-Kahlout on Rafah crossing.
MADA also expresses concern over the renewed incitement campaigns against Al-jazeera channel, where some people put large billboards in the main streets in Ramallah and Al-biereh cities, saying: “The Palestinians deplore Al-jazeera offer to sell 50% of its stocks to an Israeli businessman." Despite that Al-jazeera denied this.
MADA center renews its condemnation of all attacks on journalists which is considered flagrant violation of freedom of expression, and calls to stop it, and to enable the journalists to work freely and safely, it also demands the release of all journalists.
Details of violations:
(Nov. 3) The Italian news agency ANSA correspondent Safwat Al-Kahlout was detained and humiliated by the dismissed government police in Gaza and prevented from traveling through Rafah crossing. According to Al-Kahlout he was threatened directly by the security officer at the Rafah crossing gate to be summoned by the internal Security Agency of the ministry of Interior in the Gaza Strip, also he was insulted by some of security men. Al-Kahlout added that they detained him when he said he would submit a formal complaint to the concerned authorities.
(Nov. 7) Reuters photographer Abdel Rahim Alqusini, and the French Agency photographer Arif Tufaha were attacked by Israeli occupation forces in Oraq Burin village in south of Nablus. According to Alqusini he heard that there were confrontations between settlers and Palestinian youths in Oraq Burin, so he headed there about four o’clock pm, and while he was filming the clashes, Israeli soldiers attacked him and tried to take the camera from him by force, but he resisted and said to them: “it is my right to portray and the law protects me", then the soldier hit him with his hand and then walked away. Alqusini added: “Tufaha was depicted the attack on me, and when the soldiers noticed, three of them attacked him and pushed him to the wall and took his camera and tried to eject the tape that inside, but the journalists screamed on them and threatened to lodge a complaint against them, then they threw the camera, and fired gas grenades inside Reuters car which caused a broke on the side glass.
(Nov.8) Aqsa TV Former correspondent Tariq Abu Zeid was arrested by the Palestinian intelligence service in the West Bank. His father said that some people of mentioned service gave his son a call on Saturday 7 November when he was wandering around Nablus city. And when he went to their headquarters in Nablus, they arrested him. Abu Zeid was arrested by the Palestinian intelligence service in the twenty-seventh of last August, and was released on the seventeenth of last September.
(Nov. 9) The prevention to hold a media conference for the International Federation of Journalists in Gaza. U.S. ABC television correspondent and member of the Journalists Syndicate in Gaza, Sami Ziyara said that the dismissed government media office in Gaza prevented the convening of the International Conference which was scheduled for two days, in conjunction with a conference in Ramallah via video conferencing, on grounds of failure to obtain a license to be held. Ziyara added that the government media office asked the International Federation of Journalists to apply for a permission from the government in Gaza to hold the conference, but the “IFJ" refused to do so, because it used to hold conferences in all countries of the world without a permit. The government media office also summoned the Press Syndicate member Sakhr Abu-Oun and interrogated him on the same subject.
(Nov. 9) Al-Jazeera English cameraman Ma’moun Siyam was an assassination attempt by settlers near Yitzhar settlement near Nablus city. Siyam said that when he was filming in a street near the settlement, a group of settlers severely beat him and put the gun on his head, and tried to burn his car. But by chance an Israeli army patrol came so the settlers ran away from him. Siyam added: “after that the army took me, and they interrogated me five hours, and after they had known the truth they released me.
(Nov. 9) The freelance journalist Mustafa Sabri was summoned by the Palestinian intelligence service in Qalqilya. According to Sabri, he went at 9 am to the intelligence headquarters on a call received by intelligence officers. When he arrived there, he waited about an hour, then they started to interrogate him, and they asked him if he works with Aqsa TV, but he told them that he is a freelance journalist and works mainly with Kuwaiti society magazine, and with the Palestinian News Network. After that they asked him to sign a pledge to respect the applicable laws. Then he was relieved about 11 am.
(Nov. 10) Ramatan’s headquarter agency in Gaza was raided by the internal security of the dismissed government, to prevent the holding of a press conference for the Palestinian National Action, which led the agency to protest on this by closing its offices. Ramatan reported in a statement that its closure came after the accumulation of several factors related to the violation of law, freedom of expression and press freedom, and harassment faced by the internal security forces of the government in Gaza, and the prevention of holding the press conference. One of Ramatan’s officers, who preferred not to be named, said that it was scheduled to hold a press conference for the Palestinian National Action
around 7:00 PM on Tuesday (10 Nov.) in order to announce a statement
indicating that the dismissed government did not allow them to commemorate
the fifth memorial of Yasser Arafat death. And when the conference was
due to begin, the internal security raided their office, and told them
that it was not allowed to hold the press conference, because they did not
get permission for it.
(Nov. 12) The Hebron electronic newspaper editor Walid Suleiman Amayreh was arrested by the Preventive Security Service in Hebron. Amayreh’s brother said that the “PSS" handed a call to his brother for a short interview about his activities. And when he went there at the next day they arrested him and released him after 48 hours.
(NOV.12) Aqsa TV former cameraman Osaid Amarneh was arrested by Palestinian military intelligence in Bethlehem. According to his mother, she said that the military intelligence came to their house at 11 am, and they said if Osaid did not come out of the house within half an hour, we will raid the house. His mother added: “We have asked them to go and Osaid will joined you later when he gets ready, but they refused and said that they will wait him outside, and then they took him out with them". He was released on 26 November 2009.
(Nov.12) –Aqsa TV Former correspondent Alaa Al-Titi was arrested by the Palestinian intelligence service in Hebron. His father said that the intelligence service arrested him from the shop he was working at. His father added that he had made sue to the Supreme Court. After his release on 26 November 2009, Al-Titi said that he had been arrested on the back of his previous work in Al-Aqsa TV, although he previously arrested by the Preventive Security for the same reason. Al-Titi Added: “I told them that it’s not legal to arrest me twice for the same reason, they interrogated me at the first two days of detention, and I assured them that am not working with Aqsa TV."
(Nov. 14) - Yediot Aharonot newspaper photographer Atta Owissat was attacked by a group of religious Jews. Atta said that he went with a group of journalists to cover a demonstration of about 2000 devout Jew to protest Intel Corporation work in Saturdays. During the event, the Jews attacked them to prevent them from covering the event, and when they knew that Owissat is a Palestinian , they assaulted and cursed him, and one of them threw a strange object on his right ear, causing his loss of hearing for a while, then they attacked his car.
(Nov. 14) - Aqsa TV Director in the West Bank Mohammed Eshtewi was arrested by the Palestinian intelligence service in Tulkarm city. Eshtewi’s wife said that the intelligence arrested her husband, where they attended to his home to arrest him on Thursday, November 2009, but he was at the doctor for treatment. And when he went to their headquarters in Tulkarm, they arrested him and released him on 15 November 2009 to see his brother who was released from an Israeli prison after serving three years in captivity, and then he returned to the prison in Ramallah next day.
(Nov. 18) Al-Jazeera English cameraman Ma’moun Siyam was attacked twice in the same day by the Israeli security forces in Al-Esawiya and Silwan (Jerusalem). Siyam said: “Some of Israeli Special Forces assaulted me and hit me twice in Al-Esawiya and Silwan. The first when I was covering the demolition in Al-Esawiya, and the second when I was with group of journalists to cover the demolition of “Women’s Association" building in the old city, but this time they beat me brutally, and they tried to break my camera by throwing it into the wall but I defended it fiercely like my son, and I took it so my hand was injured." Siyam added: “I am suffering from beatings and bruises from an injury in my shoulder and neck so I couldn’t go to the work. And I had been attacked on the same day to launch three rubber bullets of snipers which passed next to my head and it was possible to end my life, while I was standing in front of the sniper he fired rubber bullets at me , this scene was covered by a cameraman and it was screened on Al Jazeera TV.
(Nov. 18)- Al-Quds Net News website correspondent Diala Juehan was attacked by Israeli security forces in Jerusalem while she was covering the houses demolition in Silwan. Juehan said that some of journalists went to Silwan to cover the demolition of “Women’s Association" building in the old city, but the military forces as always prevent them to take a photos, and they cruelly pushed them by their hand and guns. Juehan added: “one of them pushed me by his hand and gun so I felt very humiliated, this is the fifth time that I was maltreated by Israeli Military and Police.
(Nov. 18) - Alquds newspaper photographer Mamhoud Elaian, Pal Media cameraman Hamza Al-Naajy, Routers photographer Sinan Abu Mezar, and the CNN cameraman Karim Khadir, were attacked by the Israeli security forces in Silwan. Elaian said that they faced a cruelly treatment from the security forces while they were covering the demolition of Palestinian homes. The military tried to keep them away from the area to prevent them from covering, so they treat them cruelly and barbaric.
(Nov. 18) - Palestine TV cameraman Nader Baybres was attacked by the Israeli army during his coverage of the houses demolition in Silwan in Jerusalem. According to Baybres that the soldiers shot him directly with a new type of rubber bullets when he was on the roof of on one of the houses, where the bullets passed through the side of his head and when he tried to escape from them, he fell on the ground causing him bruises and pain in his foot. Baybres added: “The Jerusalemites journalists also suffer from the Palestinian young demonstrators because they thought that they are Israeli army distinguished as photographers, where young people throwing him with stones in the belief that he is Arabist."
(Nov.18) The freelance journalist Ahmad Al-khaseeb was arrested by Palestinian preventive security service in tulkarem city. According to Al-khaseeb his father called him and told him that the mentioned service came to his house and asked about him and took his own computer. After that he went to their headquarter and they arrested him. Alkhaseeb added: “they interrogated me about my relationships for five days. He confirmed that they treated him well and didn’t torture him. Alkhaseeb was released on 5 December.
(Nov.27) - Sawt Al-hurieha radio Headquarter was raided and its employees were attacked by Palestinian police in Ramallah. Al-hurieha director Majdi Al-arabed said that three detectives raided Al-hurieh headquarter and said to him that they have an order to close it, so he asked them to see the order or an official document to prove that they are detectives, but they refused, so he told them to go out. After that the men calls the police and about 30 policemen raided the radio and hit 5 of its employees and arrested them. When they arrived the police headquarter some political personalities intervened, then they released them on a bail, and to be called when there is need. According to Israeli sources the radio closure came as a demand of Israeli authorities, because it muddles on Ben Groin airport frequencies. Sawt Al-hurieh radio was broadcasting from Gaza before Hamas control there, where a Palestinian armed group raided it’s headquarter on 14 June 2007 and confiscated all its equipment.
