THE National Union of Journalists on Tuesday joined the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate (PJS), in welcoming the release of three women journalists among the 90 Palestinian prisoners released on 20th January.
The IFJ has published the following details about the journalists:
Bushra Al-Tawil is a Palestinian journalist and a PJS member who works for J-Media Network and was arrested and held in administrative detention on 7th March 2024, as reported by the PJS.
Al-Tawil has been arrested several times and has spent more than five years in Israeli jails at various times.
Israel’s security forces arrested PJS member Rula Hassanein on 9th March 2024 during a raid on her home in Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem, in the occupied West Bank.
They confiscated her laptop and phone. When the journalist was arrested, she had to leave her nine-month-old baby with her husband.
Hassanein, who worked for the Ramallah-based Wattan News Agency and had earlier worked for Quds News Network, is well known for her coverage of the Israeli occupation and human rights violations.
She was tried before an Israeli military court at Israel’s Ofer Prison and charged with incitement on social media for posts she had published.
Ashwaq Awad is a freelance photographer at Quds News Network and a PJS member. She was arrested on 31st August 2024 at a checkpoint in Hebron, in the occupied West Bank, when the Israeli military was closing the entrances to the city, according to WAFA news agency.
Awad was charged with incitement on social media for posts she published, according to PJS.
The NUJ welcomed news of the ceasefire deal last week, urging clear guarantees for press freedom, whilst underscoring the need for unfettered foreign media access into Gaza.
Under terms agreed in the deal ratified on 19th January, both sides must cease operations for 42 days, dozens of Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners will be released.
Israeli troops will also gradually withdraw from Gaza.
Anthony Bellanger, IFJ general secretary, said: ‘We celebrate the return home of our four colleagues, who should never have been deprived of their freedom.
‘Once again, we praise the relentless work of our affiliate, the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate, and fully back their efforts for the release of jailed Palestinian journalists.
‘Israel must halt its persecution of Palestinian journalists, and immediately and unconditionally release them all.’
- In response to the slew of executive actions announced by President Trump shortly after his inauguration as 47th President of the United States, Amnesty International USA has responded specifically to two in particular: Trump’s calling for mass deportations of people seeking safety and his withdrawal from the Paris Agreement.
Immigration and refugee rights
Amy Fischer, Director of the Refugee and Migrant Rights Programme at Amnesty International USA, said: ‘Barely a couple of hours into his second term, President Trump is already seeking to implement his harmful, racist, anti-immigrant agenda with these executive actions.
‘President Trump’s National Emergency Declaration turns the white nationalist “Great Replacement Theory” into federal policy.
‘To be clear, reinstating cruel border policies, ending rights enshrined in the Constitution like birthright citizenship, shutting down the CBP One application, and implementing targeted raids across the United States, not only sows chaos and fear among communities across the country and people attempting to seek safety in the US, it perpetuates false narratives and harm rooted in white supremacy.
‘The Trump administration believes our immigrant neighbours shouldn’t be here.
‘And after President Biden eroded the rights of people seeking safety, President Trump’s promises to further crack down on asylum will only exacerbate the chaos across the country and the humanitarian crisis at the border.
‘People are struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table.
‘Yet President Trump’s response is to blame immigrants and people seeking safety for problems that he and other leaders are failing to address.
‘Brave, resilient families and individuals arrive to the US to exercise their right to seek safety, to seek a new life, to pursue their dreams, and contribute to their new communities.
‘They are met by a broken system that prolongs and profits off their suffering.
‘President Trump’s fearmongering scapegoats immigrants for the political failures of our elected leaders.
‘Those seeking safety and a better life in the US are not the cause of the housing, climate, or opioid crises, or rising costs at the grocery store – policymakers are.
‘We must put a stop to the years-long trend of playing politics and stoking fear with people’s lives to facilitate the adoption of increasingly draconian border and immigration policies that violate the human rights of people seeking safety, fuel violence against Black, brown, and Indigenous communities across the US, and exacerbate the dysfunction of our already beleaguered immigration system.
‘Solutions that abide by human rights obligations, include the voices and experiences of impacted communities, allow our immigrant neighbours to access a pathway to citizenship, and respect the shared strength that comes from welcoming people seeking safety are effective, fair, and ultimately save taxpayer dollars to be reinvested in policies and programmes that lift up all of our communities.
‘Amnesty International will continue to document human rights abuses, advocate for the human rights of all immigrants and people seeking safety in the United States, and hold US government officials accountable.’
- Meanwhile, help scrap Prevent – the UK government’s ‘terrorism’ prevention policy, urges Amnesty International.
Amnesty says: ‘From attending an Extinction Rebellion protest to voicing anti-racist views online, these rights might land you a “Prevent” referral.
‘So, what is “Prevent”? It is a seriously flawed UK government policy.
‘Schools, universities, hospitals, and local authorities are all under a duty to refer people who are at risk of being “drawn into terrorism”.
‘This is supposed to protect us, but in reality, it is doing the opposite.
‘Often, the ones hit the hardest are children, neurodivergent people, and Muslim people.
‘They are wrongly flagged as high risks for being “drawn into terrorism”, despite never committing a crime or displaying intention to do so.
‘The reasons for “Prevent” referrals are often a mystery, and there is no clear way to challenge them.
‘Gut instincts drive these decisions, paving the way for more racism in our institutions.
‘But here is the thing: The power to change this narrative is in our hands.
‘By scrapping “Prevent” and championing the cause of equality, justice, and dignity for all, irrespective of their backgrounds or circumstances, we can create a reality that reflects our values for a better future.
‘We will be campaigning to scrap “Prevent”: Will you join us?’
