Palestinian Prisoners’ Day: Bassem Tamimi, over a year in prison

By Mairav Zonszein April 17, 2012 | Edit

Bassem Tamimi has been sitting in an Israeli prison for over a year. Tamimi is a prominent Palestinian activist from the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, where he has led the small village’s popular unarmed struggle against Israeli occupation and takeover of land since its beginnings at the end of 2009.

Tamimi was arrested in his home on March 24, 2011 for organizing protests and inciting against Israel, based on testimony by Islam Dar Ayyoub, a 14-year old resident of Nabi Saleh who was taken from him home in the middle of the night by Israeli forces for interrogation. His military trial is still ongoing.

Tamimi has been arrested by Israel a total of 11 times and spent around three years in administrative detention, but never convicted of an offense. Amnesty International has declared him a prisoner of conscience and called for his release.

This photograph was taken of him in his home yesterday, April 16, after he was permitted a temporary release from prison for 48 hours to visit his mother in the hospital, who suffered a stroke.

Palestinian Prisoners' Day: Bassem Tamimi, over a year in prison

Bassem Tamimi in his home (Photo: Keren Manor/Activestills)

Read Bassem Tamimi’s statement to the military court nearly a year ago here, in which he explains his motivations for civil disobedience and fight for justice.

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TEST TEST GAL Our team has been devastated by the horrific events of this latest war. The world is reeling from Israel’s unprecedented onslaught on Gaza, inflicting mass devastation and death upon besieged Palestinians, as well as the atrocious attack and kidnappings by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Our hearts are with all the people and communities facing this violence. We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The bloodshed has reached extreme levels of brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Emboldened settlers in the West Bank, backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to intensify their attacks on Palestinians. The most far-right government in Israel’s history is ramping up its policing of dissent, using the cover of war to silence Palestinian citizens and left-wing Jews who object to its policies. This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the past 14 years covering: Israeli society’s growing racism and militarism, entrenched occupation and apartheid, and a normalized siege on Gaza. We are well positioned to cover this perilous moment – but we need your help to do it. This terrible period will challenge the humanity of all of those working for a better future in this land. Palestinians and Israelis are already organizing and strategizing to put up the fight of their lives. Can we count on your support? +972 Magazine is a leading media voice of this movement, a desperately needed platform where Palestinian and Israeli journalists, activists, and thinkers can report on and analyze what is happening, guided by humanism, equality, and justice. Join us.

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