PHOTOS: 14-year-old Palestinian girl released from prison after 44 days

By Activestills February 13, 2015 | Edit

Photos: Ahmad al-Bazz
Text: Yael Marom

After 44 days in an Israeli prison, 14-year-old Malak al-Khatib has returned to her family. Family members waited for al-Khatib Friday morning at the Jabara checkpoint in Tulkarem.

Malak al-Khatib is greeted by family members as she is released from prison after 44 days, Jabara checkpoint, near Tulkarem, West Bank, February 13, 2015. (photo: Ahmad al-Bazz)

Al-Khatib, a 9th grader from the village Beitin near Ramallah, was arrested on December 31, 2014 near her school. Soldiers who were passing by claimed they saw her throwing stones, and that they found a knife in her backpack. She was taken to Ofer Military Prison, where she was interrogated and brought before a judge, who decided to extend her detention. Since then, she has been held at Hasharon Prison.

Al-Khatib, who became sick while in prison, was taken time and time again to court hearings at Ofer, including ones that never actually took place. On January 22, Malak’s attorney accepted a plea bargain offered by the military prosecutor, and the court sentenced her to 60 days in prison (including the 22 days she had already spent there), as well as a fine of NIS 6,000. The family claims that Malak was coerced into admitting she threw stones, and that they were unable to visit her throughout her detention.

Malak al-Khatib is greeted by family members as she is released from prison after 44 days, Jabara checkpoint, near Tulkarem, West Bank, February 13, 2015. (photo: Ahmad al-Bazz)

Al-Khatib’s story has raised controversy across the world over the last few weeks, leading activists to start several campaigns for her release. These campaigns eventually lead the military prosecutor to release a detailed statement [Hebrew] explaining why it is reasonable to jail a 14-year-old girl.

According to Ma’an News Agency, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club estimates that 200 Palestinian minors are held in Israeli prisons. Only four are girls, with Malak being the youngest.

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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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