Free Mohammad Othman, Palestinian prisoner of conscience

On September 22, Mohammad Othman was arrested by soldiers on the Allenby Bridge Crossing, at the Jordan-Palestine border. He is being held in administrative detention as a prisoner of conscience, arrested solely for his human rights advocacy work. Even after his first trial yesterday, the charges against him have not been made clear.

Mohammad, 33 years old, is from Jayyous, a village devastated by the Apartheid Wall and the Zufim settlement. He has dedicated the last ten years of his life to the defense of Palestinian human rights, working primarily with Palestinian youth and with the Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign.

Mohammad was arrested upon his return from Norway, where he met with senior officials, including Norwegian Finance Minister Kristen Halvorsen. Norway’s national Pension Fund recently announced its divestment from Elbit, an Israeli company that designs and manufactures military technology for the Occupation forces, including Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and security systems for the Wall and settlements.

Post-travel arrest is a common Israeli repression tactic, intended to deter Palestinians from international human rights advocacy. Recently, Muhammad Srour, an eye witness for the UN Fact Finding Mission on Gaza, was arrested on his way home from Geneva. In June 2009, Mohammad Khatib traveled to Canada to attend the preliminary hearings of an historic lawsuit launched by the Palestinian village of Bil’in against two Quebec-based companies building illegal Israeli settlements on Bil’in's land. Shortly after his return, Khatib was arrested during a raid on the village. There are many similar cases.

Mohammad Othman is one of 11,000 Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons. More than 800 of these prisoners are in “administrative detention”, held indefinitely without criminal charge. Mass imprisonment is a key component of Israel’s policy of isolating the Palestinian people and silencing their struggle for justice.

What you can do to help:

• Contact the Canadian in Tel Aviv to demand the immediate release of Mohammad Othman (sample letter below):

Canadian Embassy in Tel Aviv
Email: taviv@international.gc.ca
Phone: (011 972 3) 636 3300
Fax: (011 972 3) 636 3383

• Contact your Member of Parliament to demand that they advocate for the release of Mohammad Othman (sample letter below):

To find contact info for your MP, go to the link below:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Compilations/HouseOfCommons/MemberByPostalCode.aspx?Menu=HOC

• Sign the online petition for Mohammad:
http://www.petitiononline.com/stopwall/petition.html

• Follow the blog and facebook to free Mohammad Othman to see the
latest updates and action alerts.
Blog: http://freemohammadothman.wordpress.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=36429272741&ref=ts
Detailed information about his detention and trial:
www.stopthewall.org or http://addameer.info/

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Sample letter to the Canadian Embassy and MPs:

Dear x,

I am writing to you to express my deepest concern about the detainment of Mohammad Othman on, September 22, at the border between Jordan and the West Bank. He was returning home after a visit in Norway.

I fear that the detainment of Mohammad Othman is a result of his peaceful criticism of violations of international law by Israeli authorities. The charges against him have not been made clear even after his first court appearance, but there is reason to believe that he is a prisoner of conscience, arrested solely for his human rights work through legal organizations.

I ask you to take all appropriate measures, including official inquiries and protests, to ensure Mohammad’s immediate and unconditional release. Furthermore, whilst being held, he should be protected from any form of torture or ill-treatment, and the conditions of his detention should fulfill the requirements of international law.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this urgent matter.

Sincerely,