Freedom for Sheikh Yusuf Al-Baz, who is on hunger strike

Written by: Attorney Ali Abu Hilal

The violations of the Israeli occupation did not stop at the rights of a specific group of the Palestinian people, and were not limited to the Palestinians who resided in the occupied Palestinian territories in 1967. Elders and seniors...

Last Friday, 8/12/2022, Sheikh Yusef Al-Baz, the imam of the Great Mosque in Lod, was transferred to Soroka Hospital (in Beersheba) after a serious deterioration in his health, one day after he embarked on a hunger and water strike in Al-Ramon prison in the Negev, in protest against the decision of the Central Court in the city of Lod, to keep him in detention until the end of the judicial procedures in the alleged case against him. ‏

Sheikh Youssef Al-Baz has been detained since April 30, in a file accusing him of incitement against its forces by the Israeli occupation authorities, and his support for acts of "disturbing order", following the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem during the month of Ramadan.

It is noteworthy that Sheikh Youssef Al-Baz, 64 years old, is a heart patient and several other diseases, and he is a father of 7 children. He went on strike for food and water, to demand his release, after the occupation court in the city of Rishon Lezion decided to refuse to release him, and an appeal was made. On the decision, he was refused release in the Central Court in the city of Lod. ‏

Lawyer Khaled Al-Zabarqa, one of Sheikh Al-Baz’s defenders, said, “The court decision indicates that we are facing a judicial system that practices the apartheid system. The Gift of Dignity We are in a new phase under Israeli military rule, but it is hidden. They apply military rule with civilian tools, the courts, police, municipalities and banks.

Sheikh Al-Baz was previously arrested after the events that took place in the city of Lod during the "Gift of Dignity" last year, and he has been suffering from the occupation's pursuit of him for years because of his stances. Sheikh Al-Baz is also undergoing another trial, after the Israeli occupation authorities accused him of incitement to violence during the uprising. Al-Baz is a prominent leader in the Islamic movement banned by the cabinet decision since November 2015, and is known for his positions defending and advocating for Arab rights in Lod for many years.

A few days ago, calls were launched in the occupied interior for the broadest campaign of support for the captive Sheikh Youssef Al-Baz, who is on hunger and water strike. By the decision of the occupation authorities and its unjust courts, which requires keeping the imam of the Great Mosque in Lod, Sheikh Al-Baz, under arrest, until the end of the so-called judicial procedures against him. To demand his release from prison

The continued detention of the elderly Sheikh Youssef Al-Baz and the continuation of arbitrary repressive measures against him in prison contradicts the rights guaranteed to him under international human rights conventions, which guarantee his right and freedom to express his opinion, bearing in mind that Sheikh Al-Baz did not violate the law in everything he said or said. He writes it, and that he is subjected to malicious and arbitrary arrests, aimed at silencing the voices that expose the truth of the policies of the occupation authorities, and the truth of their practices against our people and their legitimate national rights, because expressing an opinion and declaring a political position is not a crime, but rather a right guaranteed by all laws, laws and charters. international. ‏

The deterioration of Sheikh Al-Baz’s health after announcing a strike not taking food and water since last Thursday, 11/8/2022, at a time when he suffers from serious diseases, including weak heart muscle and other chronic diseases, in addition to being an elderly person, which puts his life at risk. , and makes the continuation of his detention and the tightening of the measures of repression and abuse against him, tantamount to sentencing him to a slow death without any regard for preserving his life, and the need to provide him with adequate and appropriate health treatment outside the prison, and in the care of his family and his family.
In this regard, the campaign of solidarity and support for him by the masses of our people inside occupied Palestine in 1948 and throughout the occupied Palestinian territories should be developed and expanded. We also call on all institutions and bodies concerned with defending prisoners and detainees, and all international human rights organizations to raise their voice in order to ensure their release To release him as soon as possible, to provide him with adequate health treatment, and to save him from the policy of medical negligence against him that may endanger his life.
* Lawyer and university lecturer in international law