MEPs call on Israel to guarantee freedom of movement for Palestinian journalists
Twenty MEPs in the European Parliament of Israel signed a petition demanding respect for the freedom of movement of Palestinian journalists and the lifting of all forms of arbitrary travel bans against them in Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Twenty MEPs in the European Parliament demanded that Israel respect the freedom of movement of Palestinian journalists and lift all forms of arbitrary travel bans against them in Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
The European Representatives’ demand came through a petition launched by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and Reporters Without Borders , about two months after a report in which the Euro-Med Monitor revealed that Israel has denied a number of Palestinian journalists from traveling inside and outside the Palestinian territories as a form of punishment or bargaining.
Representatives who signed the petition criticized the Israeli authorities' use of arbitrary restrictions, such as travel bans, detention, or home invasions of Palestinian journalists, as such practices constitute a serious threat to the independence of the Palestinian press and freedom of expression in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Members of the European Parliament called on Israel to lift all forms of arbitrary travel bans against Palestinian journalists, and to stop practicing any other form of harassment, intimidation or blackmail against them.
The representatives urged Israel to conduct a transparent and independent investigation into allegations that Israeli officers threatened Palestinian journalists with depriving them of their right to travel if they refused to work with the Israeli General Security or Intelligence Service, or to provide security information.
In conjunction with the launch of the petition, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and Reporters Without Borders organized, on Tuesday, a virtual symposium that discussed the Israeli restrictions imposed on Palestinian journalists' right to freedom of movement, with the participation of European Parliament Member Margaret Oken.
"It is very clear that journalists are being punished for doing their work, and this is one of the brutal Israeli violations against the media and journalists, and it is part of the violations related to apartheid and occupation against the Palestinians in general . It is also clear that the European Union does not bear its responsibilities towards Israel," Oken said.
In addition, the representative condemned the restrictions imposed on Palestinian journalists by both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.
And in November 2021, a report by the Euro-Mediterranean Monitor documented the use of travel bans by the Israeli security services as a means of pressure to compel Palestinian journalists to cooperate with security, or to refrain from working for certain media or reporting on certain activities. It also presented testimonies of journalists who were subjected to various forms of intimidation and harassment by the Israeli authorities, including house raids, arbitrary arrests and harsh interrogations.
Last December, the Euro-Med Monitor, in partnership with Reporters Without Borders, launched the "# LetMajdoleenOut " campaign on social media to demand the immediate end of the Israeli travel ban imposed on dozens of Palestinian journalists from leaving the West Bank and Gaza Strip, including " Majdoleen Hassouna, winner of the 2021 Reporters Without Borders Prize for Press Freedom .
The Israeli authorities, which have controlled the external borders of the Palestinian territories for two years, prevent Hassouna from traveling to Istanbul, where she works for the Turkish TRT network, and continued to prevent her from traveling to receive the award she won last year.
Injuries and road closures Bad weather hits 5 Arab countries
5 Arab countries are witnessing bad weather, in which 22 people were injured in Egypt, and roads were closed in Syria and Lebanon, amid warnings and alerts in Jordan, Palestine and Iraq.
On Wednesday, 5 Arab countries witnessed bad weather, in which 22 people were injured in Egypt, and roads were closed in Syria and Lebanon, amid warnings and alerts in Jordan, Palestine and Iraq.
Twenty-two people were injured in two collisions and overturning of cars on the western desert road in Minya, central Egypt, due to the speed of the wind and the imbalance of the steering wheel, "according to local media reported by "Al-Masry Al-Youm." The Egyptian Ministry of Interior decided to push relief vehicles on the roads due to the bad weather wave.
And the Egyptian (state-owned) newspaper, Akhbar Al-Youm, reported on Wednesday that "10 crew members of an Egyptian merchant ship, which was split in half due to bad weather, were rescued in a marine area northwest of Crete."
In Syria, the regime's news agency reported that "a number of roads in the governorates of Damascus countryside, Hama, Latakia, Tartous, and Quneitra are impassable, or pass with difficulty due to the accumulation of snow and ice formation."
In Lebanon, the Civil Defense Authority, in a series of tweets, reported in its account documented in tension, working to “shovel snow from 8 roads to facilitate traffic, in addition to withdrawing 9 sane cars produced from hail, and rescuing citizens who were stuck in three cars, including a family of 3 people, due to weather".
In Jordan, the Directorate of Public Security reported that "snow began to fall in the governorates of Karak, Tafileh, Shobak Brigade and Ras al-Naqab.
The directorate said, according to the official news agency, that "the roads there are passable with great caution," calling for "not to leave homes and use vehicles except for the utmost necessity."
In Iraq, the Meteorological Authority expected "thunderstorms and a drop in temperatures on Thursday," according to a statement carried by the official news agency.
In Palestine, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called the Minister of Interior, Major General Ziad Hab Al-Rih, and the Director General of Civil Defense, Major General Al-Abd Khalil, instructing to harness all available capabilities to reduce the effects of the air depression, which began in light of expectations of the accumulation of snow and wind speed, according to the official news agency.
Meanwhile, local Palestinian media reported pictures of the deployment of civil defense crews in the town of Al-Ram in occupied Jerusalem, in preparation for the air depression.
12-year prison sentence for dismissed Jordanian parliamentarian Osama Al-Ajarmeh
A Jordanian court has issued a 12-year prison sentence to temporary labor, about 7 months after his arrest, over statements that were described as "offensive" to the king and society.
On Wednesday, the Jordanian "State Security" court sentenced the dismissed parliament member Osama Al-Ajarmeh, 12 years to temporary labor, after about 7 months of his arrest against the background of statements described as "offensive" to the king and society.
The official Jordan News Agency (Petra) reported that the verdict was issued in a public session, where it was decided to imprison the remaining defendants with temporary work for a period ranging between 7 and 8 years, without specifying their numbers and identities.
Judgments issued by the State Security Court are subject to appeal before the Court of Cassation, which is the highest judicial authority in the country.
On June 6, the House of Representatives (the first chamber of Parliament) voted in favor of dismissing Al-Ajarmeh against the background of what he considered “offensive” statements against the king and society, then he was arrested in the middle of the same month, and his trial began three months later.
The decision to dismiss Al-Ajarma came days after Parliament suspended its membership in late May; Because of his “abuse of the council, its members and its internal system,” according to the council’s decision, following his intervention in the council regarding the incident of power outage throughout the kingdom.
On May 21, 2021, the electricity supply was completely cut off throughout Jordan, as a result of a malfunction in the transmission network of the State Electricity Company.
At the time, al-Ajarma said, the outage was "deliberate"; To prevent solidarity marches for clans with Palestine in light of the recent Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, while his colleagues demanded that he prove what he says is true.
The decisions of the House of Representatives against Al-Ajarmeh led to demonstrations and demonstrations supporting and condemning, which expanded to confrontations with the security forces in his hometown of Naour Brigade (affiliated with the capital, Amman).
However, a video statement made by Al-Ajarma in one of the events, in which he threatened the country's king, led to the retreat of his supporters and the decline and subsequent end of the protests, after which his arrest was announced on June 16 last.