Major General Qadri Abu Baker, the head of the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs, sent a letter of thanks on Sunday, 24 February 2019 to the Belgian Intal Globalize Solidarity praising its role in advocating the issue of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails. Abu Baker called on the international solidarity movements to make more efforts to break the international silence, and stated that solidarity events in various places help raising the awareness about the issue of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails, empower their will and determination, and encourage them to achieve their goals under the pressure practiced against them by the Israeli prisons administration. It is worth mentioning that the Belgian Intal Globalize Solidarity is an association subordinate to the Belgian Labor's Party (a left-wing party and one of the strongest advocates of the Palestinian issue), which organized an event in headquarter in Aalst on February 16, 2019 that included an explanation of the annual report issued by the Commission of Detainees Affairs. Many members of the Belgian Labor's party, representatives of the Belgian parliament, peace activists and lecturers have participated in the event. The event ended with signing 15 letters which were sent to the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling for releasing all sick and old detainees in addition to female detainees, minor detainees and the long-term detainees who were imprisoned before the Oslo Accord, especially the detainee Kareem Younes being the oldest long-term detainee in the world.
On Sunday, February 17, the Israeli government took the unlawful decision of stealing once again Palestinian tax revenues. In response to this brazen robbery, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi issued the following statement on behalf of the PLO Executive Committee:
The martyr detainee Fares Ahmad Mohammad Baroud is 51 years old from Al-Shate' camp/ Gaza, he is detained since 23/3/1991 He was arrested with charge of killing a settler and sentenced to life imprisonment. He had psychological problems and did not receive appropriate care. He is one of the long-term detainees who were arrested before the Oslo Accord. He was supposed to be released within the fourth group, but the occupation authorities refused to release him after the negotiations of 2013. With his martyrdom, the number of martyrs of the captive movement reaches to 218. He had an internal hemorrhage in 18/11/2018 and he got transferred to Soroka hospital. He was diagnosed with a problem in the artery that feed the liver. He had a surgery to remove this artery and part of the liver. He was prevented from family visits since 2000.
The advocate of the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs, Mo'taz Shqiarat, cited on Tuesday the story of the minor detainee Mohammad Abdullah Hammad,16, from Qalandia camp, in which he was exposed to humiliation and extensive beating during his arrest in 16/1/2019 from his house. Hammad who still detained at Ofer prison stated that "a number of Israeli soldiers besieged my house in the camp, where many soldiers broke into the house accompanied by horrific dogs. The two dogs attacked me, while the soldiers were holding my family and threatening them with weapons". He added: "then they handcuffed me, blindfolded my eyes and took me to a settlement called "Kochav Ya'akov". At that time, the soldiers kept beating, cursing and deliberately forcing me to fall down". "After arriving to the settlement, they transferred me by a military vehicle to Atarot Interrogation Cetner and they forced me to confess guilt with the charge of throwing stones on soldiers at Qalandia military checkpoint, then they transferred me to Ofer prison". The Commission pointed out that the Israeli occupation with all its authorities are deliberately causing harm, humiliation and abuse against Palestinian detainees, especially children during detention, interrogation and trials. This is a clear and systematic plan to destroy the Palestinian childhood and its future, where 99% of those who got arrested are exposed to one or more kind of torture, abuse, and humiliation.
A state of tension and outrage prevailed in all sections of Megiddo prison after the abduction of Rabee' Abu Al-lail, the representative of detainees, from his cell without any justifications and transferring him to another section in preparation for transferring him to Nafaha Prison according to the Prison Administration, the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs stated on Sunday. The Commission revealed that the detainees got astonished due to the break in of section 6 at 5:00 am by the Alyamaz, Mitsada and Droor forces, who forcibly took Abu Al-lail out of his cell without allowing him to change his clothes or take anything of his belongings. This act was followed by a break in and a closure to all sections of the prison. The Commission clarified that detainees responded to this violent attack by knocking on the doors and exclaiming "God is great". In addition, they returned their meals and informed the administration of the prison that if the detainee Abu Elil was not returned to prison, there would be an escalation, noting that the administration has informed detainees at all sections that the aim of this attack is to transfer Abu Al-lail. The Commission warned of the escalation of attacks against detainees in all prisons, and called the International Community to put an end to the Israeli hatred against detainees, which is increasing with the oncoming Israeli elections. However, detainees are considered a good material for the propaganda of candidates.
The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs declared that a state of maximum alert prevailed in the Israeli jails in the meantime after the martyrdom of the detainee Fares Baroud (51 years old) from Al-Shate' camp/ Gaza, who got transferred from Ramon prison to Soroka Hospital where he was martyred. The Commission clarified that the prisons of Nafaha and Ramon was completely closed after announcing the martyrdom of Baroud, where detainees live a state of tension and alert. The Commission stated that the detainee Baroud was one of the sick detainees, who suffered from a difficult psychological situation. Moreover, he has a surgery at the end of 2018 and removed a part of the liver, due a deliberate medical negligence. It is worth mentioning that the detainee Fares Baroud was imprisoned since 23/3/1991, and sentenced to life imprisonment with the charge of killing a settler. He was supposed to be released with the last group of long-term detainees, whom the Israeli occupation promised to release during the deal of reviving the negotiations in 2013. However the occupation authorities suspended the release of the fourth group which includes 30 detainees, and refused to free them due to political reasons.
The head of the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs, Major General Qadri Abu Baker, said that the Israeli crime represented in piracy a robbery of the money of the state of Palestine, which comes under the pretext of deducting the allocations of martyrs and detainees families, will be a real timed bomb. His statements came in a meeting with delegation from Fatah movement\ Jalazon camp, where Abu Baker explained that the Palestinian leadership headed by President Mahmoud Abbas confirms that the salaries of martyrs and detainees families can't be affected, and that last penny in the budget of the authority will be given to those struggling people. Major General Abu Baker called the International community to act immediately to put an end to this organized terrorism, resulting from the competition between Israeli politicians, to achieve success in the Knesset elections. Major General Abu Baker pointed out that this piracy contradicts all international norms and conventions, and the international silence will lead to a confrontation with the occupation. He added that the Palestinian people and leadership will confront this racist extremism and that the occupation and its leadership will pay a high price for these actions. It is worth mentioning that Jalazon camp northeast of Ramallah is one of the areas that are exposed to daily attacks by the occupation, and that 120 persons from this camp are behind the bars of Israeli jails, in addition to hundreds of released detainees and martyrs.
The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs stated, Quoting the Director General of Palestinian Forensic Medicine Institute Dr. Ryan Al-Ali who participated in the autopsy, that the results showed that Baroud was exposed to a deliberate medical negligence through the past years, and that the main cause of death is MAI due to complete closure in the left coronary artery (heart attack) and other chronic diseases. Dr. Ali indicated that the martyr Baroud had epidemic hepatitis C, high blood pressure and gastric ulcer last year. He also stated that his health condition was very bad during the past months due to cirrhosis of the last stage, and that his last relapse was diagnosed with bacteremia due to gastric ulcer explosion, in addition to dropsy in the abdomen due to cirrhosis and a chronic kidney failure. Al-Ali stressed on the need to know all the reasons of the martyrdom of Baroud, to highlight the extent of medical negligence he suffered during the past years, and the wrong medical diagnoses of his health conditions when he entered the hospital before his death. The advocate of the Commission of Detainees' Affairs Kareem Ajweh stated that the Israeli police informed him about their refusal to hand over the body of the martyr after the autopsy, despite the decision of the court which allowed handing the body. The Commission of Detainees' Affairs stated that the Israeli occupation authorities and the administration of its prisons bear the full responsibility for Baroud's life. The commission pointed out that with the martyrdom of Baroud, the number of the martyrs of the Captive Movement increased to 218. It is worth mentioning that the detainee martyr baroud from Gaza Strip was detained since March 1991, and sentenced to life imprisonment with the charge of killing a settler. He was deprived of family visits since 2000, and his mother passed away without meeting him. He martyred last Wednesday after transferring him from Ramon prison to Soroka Hospital.
The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees' Affairs announced the martyrdom of the detainee Fares Baroud (51 years old) from Al-Shate' camp /Gaza inside the Israeli jails, after a short time of transferring him from Ramon Prison to one of the Israeli Hospitals. The commission stated that the reason behind his martyrdom is not clear yet, but he was suffering from deliberate medical negligence over the past years, and that he has not receive any medical care that was supposed to be provided inside the prison. The commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs states that the administration of Ramon prison and the Israeli government shall hold the responsibility of this crime, which is added to the series of crimes committed against our detainees. By his martyrdom, the number of the martyrs of the captive movement becomes 218. It is worth mentioning that the detainee Fares Baroud was imprisoned since 23/3/1991, and sentenced to life imprisonment with the charge of killing a settler. He was supposed to be released with the last group of long-term detainees, whom the Israeli occupation promised to release during the deal of reviving the negotiations in 2013. However the occupation authorities suspended the release of the fourth group which includes 30 detainees, and refused to free them due to political reasons.