PPS: Israeli Troops Arrested 63 Palestinian Women in 2004

BETHLEHEM, Palestine, April19, 2005 (IPC+PPS)-- The year 2004 witnessed a notable increase in the number of those Palestinian women being jailed by the Israeli occupation troops, as 63 Palestinian women were arrested including 14 teenagers aged less than 18 years-old.

According to a report issued by the Bethlehem-based Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) and a copy of which was received by the IPC, the Israeli occupation authorities have been jailing 120 Palestinian women including 13 mothers, 15 sick ones, as well as a baby called Nour being held with his imprisoned mom Manal Ghanem.

Throughout the year 2004, the female Palestinian prisoners were attacked fiercely for five times at the hands of the Isralei wardens; fired with tear gas canisters, beaten severely, searched while naked, isolated in solitary confinement cells, deprived of family visitations and fined with money.

The PPS pointed out that the prisoners, under the age of 18 are identified as, A'sha Ebiyat, Asma' Hussain, Nisreen Abu Zaina, Rem Hamdan, Fayrouz Mraheel, Hannan Abu Arqoub, Aya Ewais, Ibtehal Al-S'adi, Heba Jarrar, Islam Adween, Alaa' Younis, Yusri Abdo, Ayam Abdullah, Kheloud Mmohsen, Rawan Tthawabta, Rehab Aslan, Firyal J'ara, Rasha Al-Azza, Heba Yaghmour, Sana' Amro and E'houd Al-Shobaki.

The report mentioned that the youngest prisoner is Heba Yaghmour, 15 years-old, who is being hospitalized at the Israeli hospital of Hadasa Ein Karem, after having been shot and wounded by the Israeli soldiers upon her arrest in March 26, 2005.

The mother prisoners who care for babies inside the prison, are identified as Eman Ghazzawi, two babies, Suna Alra'y, one, Ibtisam Elesawi, five, Qahera Al-S'adi, four , Erina Sarahna, one , Syrian prisoner Amal Mahmoud, one , Manal Ibrahim, one, Zakiya Qar'an, three, Sima Hassan, four, Latifa Abu Thra',seven, Tahani Khalil, one, Faten Abdelkarim, seven, Zehour Hamdan, nine and Ahlam Abdullah, two.

The PPS's report made clear that the two other prisoners who had delivered inside the prison were: Mirvat Taha who gave birth to Wa'el and was released in March, 2005 and Manal Ghanem who delivered her son Nour, and is still being jailed.

The Palestinain female prisoners, have been suffering from inhumane detention conditions, including medical negligence, naked search and punishment inside the small cells by the prison's wardens, the report maintained.

Among those conditions as well, the wardens are happened to break into the prisoners' cells without any precautions, breaching privacy of such women who are mostly Muslims, it hinted.

Also, the Israeli prisons service has been jailing criminal women along side the Palestinian political female detainees, a matter that has exposed such Palestinian women to verbal insults by the criminal ones, the report explained.

As for the rooms inside the prisons, they are overcrowded with prisoners and lacking proper air conditioning and sanitation, therefore, the Palestinain prisoners have complained frequently of such rooms.

Even the prisoners' right to read has been confiscated by the Israeli prisons service, as the wardens inside such prisons happened to seize school or cultural books from such prisoners under no concrete reasons.

The PPS called on all relevant international legal institutions and the Red Cross International to intervene to put an end to the flagrant violations of the Palestinian female prisoners' basic human rights.