Press release: Nomination of human rights activist Diala Ayesh for the award of Index of Censorship – Freedom of Expression Awards.
Lawyers for justice group is proudly announcing the nominations of our collogue Diala Ayesh for the award of Index of Censorship – Freedom of Expression Awards. For her role in advocacy for the freedom and fair treatment of political prisoners. She has faced arrest, threats, and harassment from both the Israeli occupation forces and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. Since 2018, Diala has monitored the suppression, arrest, or persecution of those exercising their human rights and also represented many of those who have been targeted. This includes those arrested during peaceful gatherings or protests and cultural institutions, such as Ashtar Theater, which faced severe suppression during a march in Ramallah in July 2022. Diala has also provided advice to women journalists who faced persecution by Palestinian security agencies and supported the advocacy campaign calling for the release of arrested university students. Following the Hamas 7 October attacks and Israel’s retaliation in Gaza, Diala had continued her work providing legal advice and visiting Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. On 17 January 2024, Israeli military forces arrested Diala Ayesh as she passed through a military checkpoint in the West Bank. On 25 January, she was issued with a four-month administrative detention order by the Israeli military’s Central Command for the occupied West Bank. It has been reported that the order was given without any charge or trial, and she did not appear before a court. This administrative detention order did not include any specific charges. The military court upheld this order, extending it for another four months until 17 May. It was subsequently renewed for an additional four months. According to her lawyers, Diala was subjected to assault, threats, and insults by Israeli soldiers during her arrest. During the first week of her arrest, Diala Ayesh was denied access to her lawyer and any phone calls. Her lawyer could only see her once on 23 January 2024. Since her arrest, her family has not heard from her, and they are not allowed to call or visit her. We wish our colleague all the best and hope for her winning the award for her dedicated work and her beliefs. Till here, Issued in 4-11-2024. Lawyers for Justice.
Lawyers for Justice Group condemns the continued detention of the Mazayed Saqf Al-Hayat
Lawyers for Justice Group condemns the continued detention of the human rights activist and political critic Mazayed Saqf Al-Hayat since 15-10-2024. The detention of the activist Mazayed is the third time this year follows ongoing defamation and incitement campaigns against him, on the background of his exercise of freedom of opinion and expression and criticism of the Palestinian Authority’s policies. Mazayed was indicted on charges of provoking sectarian nudity, wrongdoing against the authorities, defamation by using electronic means and demeaning the authorities on 21-10-2024. The Nablus Magistrates’ Court continues to refuse the release the activist to suspend his activities in the public order and security. Lawyers for Justice has appealed against decisions to reject the release, but the court has dismissed the appeal and kept the activist detained. Lawyers for Justice cautioned against the persistence of the repressive approach to issues of opinion and expression, which had become a threat to human rights and called on the Group to respect the detainee’s rights and not to be subjected to it and to ensure that he received a fair trial and his immediate release. Issued in 21-10-2024, Till here, Lawyers for Justice.
The release of the detained student at Arab American University Hamam Al-Haj
The General Intelligence Service released student Hamam al-Haj at the Arab American University yesterday on Wednesday, 29-5-2024, he was detained back on the 5-5-2024, on the background of his trade union and student activities. The Jenin Magistrates’ Court had pronounced Hamam’s release on 16-5-2024, but the General Intelligence Service refused to execute the release order issued by the Jenin Magistrate, and kept him arrested by the director of the General Intelligence Service. Lawyers for Justice considers that the arrest of detainees under the supervision of the security services is an unlawful arrest and action and involves an offence prescribed by law, namely the refusal to implement a 14-day judicial decision and the imprisonment of liberty without legitimate justification. The Group also considers that the said measure contravenes the Constitutional Court’s decision in Constitutional Case No. (18/2022) issued in the 25/1/2023, which earlier annulled the administrative arrest of the Governor and repealed articles of the Jordanian Crime Prevention Law No. (7) Of 1954, which used to allow the violation of the guarantees of a fair trial. Till here, Issued in 30/5/2024. Lawyers for Justice.
Nablus Magistrate’s Court has extended the arrest of the citizen Muzed Saqf Alhayt for 15 days upon the request of the Nablus Prosecutor’s Office
Thursday 23-5-2024, The Nablus Magistrate’s Court, extended the arrest of the citizen Muzed Saqf Alhayt for 15 days upon the request of the Nablus Prosecutor’s Office for the purpose of completing the investigation. On Wednesday 22-5-2024, the Nablus Preventive Security Service arrested the human rights activist Saqf Alhayt , after breaking into his house and attacked him with rifle butts on his head and body, and insulted him in front of his wife and children. His arrest came after a campaign of incitement and threats targeted by social media groups by Palestinian Security Agency, this was a part of a policy of targeting human rights defenders with the goal of intimidating them to prevent activists from expressing their opinions guaranteed by Palestinian Constitutional Law. This arrest isn’t the first one to Saqf Alhayt against the backdrop of his political views and expression of opinion, where he is currently is being tried before the Palestinian judiciary for contempt of power, against the backdrop of criticism of the Palestinian Authority, but is remarkable in this arrest; Severe beatings, which have become a threat to his life. During the interrogation on Thursday morning of 23-5-2024 in front of the Nablus Prosecutor’s Office, the activist further raised his continued beatings and torture by the Preventive Security Service. This was documented in the interrogation transcript. Nevertheless, the Prosecutor’s Office took no action to protect him from beatings and torture. Lawyers for Justice considers the conduct of the Public Prosecutor ‘ Represents a disregard for the safety and security of detainees held by security services against the background of their human rights activity and expression of opinion. The group cautions that such conduct gives legal cover to repression and torture, The group therefore calls on the Public Prosecutor Office to intervene in order to protect the detainee, and release him immediately and ensure that his arrest does not continue at his current detention center. This statement is considered an urgent appeal for immediate intervention Lawyers For Justice notes that since the beginning of May, dozens of citizens have been arrested in the largest toll of detainees against a political background and the exercise of freedom of opinion and expression since the beginning of Israel’s aggression against the Gaza Strip on October 7. This calls into question the seriousness of the new Palestinian Government’s announcement on improving the situation of public rights and freedoms. Till here, Lawyers for Justice issued in 27/5/2024.
Israeli military court in Ofer holds appeal hearing on the administrative decision to arrest human rights defender Diala Ayesh.
An appeal hearing was held today Thursday 16/5/2024, at the Military Occupation Court-Ofer of the prisoner of occupation, lawyer and human rights defender Diala Ayesh, to ascertain her previous four-month administrative arrest warrant, which expires by tomorrow Friday 17/5/2024, unless a new administrative arrest warrant is issued against her. The occupation army arrested lawyer Ayesh at the military checkpoint called Container in the south of the occupied West Bank on 17-1-2024 before referring her to administrative detention for four months. The prisoner suffers from poor conditions of detention as other prisoners and detainees in Israeli occupation prisons, particularly prisoners who got arrested during the war and aggression against the Gaza Strip and the cities of the occupied West Bank following October 7, 2023, in the context of war and aggression against the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Prisoners of the Gaza Strip, which reports on the death of approximately 20 prisoners since the beginning of the war, Other than Gaza prisoners deprived of all kinds of legal representation before military courts or visits by lawyers or know the fate of those who were alive or martyred during or after the arrest. Prisoner Ayesh, who has been in Damon prison for four months, spoke during today’s session about the conditions of her detention, which reflect the situation of Palestinian women prisoners in occupation prisons; This reflects the deterioration of living conditions inside the prison, the reduction of the break at the prison, the reduction of food and the accumulation of detainees in each room, forcing four women prisoners inside her room to sleep on the floor. And the lack of clothes and covers, the lack of basic needs for women prisoners, as well as the poor handling during counting prisoners that is more frequent per day than before the war, In addition to the limited visits of lawyers, the continued deprivation of purchasing of needs from the Cafeteria (prison cafeteria). Lawyers for Justice fears of any renewal of the administrative detention of lawyer and human rights defender Diala Ayesh particularly with the expiration of the current order tomorrow, Friday 17.5.2024, and without a verdict on the appeal at today’s hearing The Group notes that all detainees under administrative detention are arbitrarily detained without any charges, on the basis of the Mandatory Emergency Law, which is contrary to all guarantees of a fair trial and is also totally incompatible with the right to self-determination. Till here, Lawyer for Justice Issued in 16/5/2024.
“We want to live”!
The Lawyers for Justice group has followed the arrest of 11 persons by the Palestinians Security Forces in the city center of Hebron in 05/06/2022, then transported 8 of them to the security committee in Jericho, regarding their participation in a popular protest against extreme high living expenses of goods and services. After the arrest of those who are mentioned, the Security Forces have referred them to the security committee center in Jericho, then they brought them back to the general prosecution in Hebron, charged with roads sabotage and illegal gathering. The general prosecution had issued a decision to extend the arrest to 48 hours to complete the investigation while some of the accused refused to sign the interrogatory in the prosecution, as some of the arrested had declared they had permission to protest based on the law. Later on June, 6th, 2022 they have been all released. Accordingly; Lawyers for Justice confirms that the dispersal of any peaceful sit-in is an assault on a constitutional right, and a clear violation of the Palestinian Basic Law, which guarantees the public freedoms of citizens within the scope of the law. The group also emphasizes that the seriousness of these measures taken by the security services, which were covered by the Public Prosecution in Hebron, negatively affect citizens’ exercise of their constitutional rights and lead to people’s reluctance to use their constitutional rights they have by law for fear of repression and/or arrest.