Conditions in Israeli Prisons Take Toll on Palestinian Families
Palestinians thrown into Israeli prisons are deprived of the rights their Israeli counterparts receive, with families often kept apart for decades with no hope of reuniting, writes Linah Alsaafin.
Majd Ziada, 29 years old, hasn’t seen his parents and two sisters for over a decade. He was put in prison at the age of 19 during the Second Intifada in 2002 with a 15-year sentence after the Israeli government accused him of being a member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, Fatah’s armed resistance wing.
At his appeal in an Israeli military courtroom, Majd gave a defiant statement against the occupation, which resulted in another 15 years added to his sentence:
“I do not believe in this court because it is an unjust one. I am opposed to the occupation and I will remain opposed to the occupation. So go ahead and sentence me. I will join my brothers and sisters in jail and consider it a badge of honor,” he said.
Majd’s mother, 59-year-old Lutfiya, was diagnosed last year with breast cancer. She initially refused chemotherapy and doctor-prescribed medicine, and instead focused on treating herself through healthy eating, organic food and herbs. In one instance, Israeli authorities, on no reasonable claim, confiscated a nutritional package sent to her by a doctor from the U.S. by post.
