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The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil,    but because of the people who don't do anything about it

Occupation magazine - Life under occupation Home page  back Print  Send To friend Urgent action requested - my dear friend Hiba imprisoned Trisha Issahra 7.4.2013 Dear friends, colleagues, fellow activists, and people of conscience:Many of you who work for human rights and social justice are probably aware of the actions of the Israeli army in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza. Every night the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) conduct raids in Palestinian villages and refugee camps even though, as per the Oslo Agreements, the Palestinian Authority is responsible for the security inside the Palestinian cities. Soldiers pound on people’s doors in the middle of the night, rousing them from their beds, waking children at 2 a.m. to photograph them, ransacking homes, arresting family members.According to successful businessman and activist Sam Bahour, “The routine then goes something like this. Within eight days he [the arrested person] will be brought before an Israeli military ‘judge’ for the sake of processing only, not deliberating. The entire kangaroo court then, without sharing the reason why the Palestinian detainee is being held, flashes the security card to justify not sharing information on why they have acted against a specific individual. Then the court slaps an Administrative Detention Order on the detainee. That means he sits in prison for no reason at all.” (Bahour)On April 2, the family of my friend Khaled had such a visit. Imagine my horror and surprise when Khaled called to tell me the news! I was even more horrified when Khaled told me that the soldiers had arrested his lovely wife Hiba who is very ill with undiagnosed stomach problems. Hiba is a sweet, very shy young woman. She lives for her family, for taking her daughters Malak and Yara to play in the park, to bake cakes for family and friends. She enjoys doing the traditional embroidery that Palestinian women are famous for, to go shopping with her friends. Khaled and Hiba have a simple lifestyle that revolves around family and friends. Malak and Yara have never been without their mom. They are traumatized by this situation.Below is a letter that Khaled wrote describing what happened:Dear Friends,At 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, 2 April 2013, we were surprised to see Israeli soldiers surrounding our house in Beit Jala and knocking loudly on the door. I was shocked when the intelligence captain asked, “Where is Hiba, your wife?”“My wife, Hiba? Why do you want her? She is a mother to two little girls, Yara who is 5 years old and Malak who is 7 years old. She hasn’t had any problems with the Israel security and her files are clean, she’s a housewife, her life is normal, she doesn’t have any political activities or any doings against the occupation, absolutely she does not belong to any violence groups. She doesn’t even work and she has nothing to do with politics!” I told the captain, “You know that I am a peaceful person who has nothing to do with politics. I’m not an activist and I never will be. All that I care about is my family! I need to tell you that my wife suffers from health issues.”For the past month I have been trying to get a permission from the Israeli office for my wife to go to Al-Makassed hospital in Jerusalem because she’s sick. She has a lot of pains, hard pains in her stomach. She has lost nearly 10 kilograms of her weight. She’s now just 49, less than 49 kilograms. The doctors we have seen have not been able to diagnose her illness, so we were going to go to the hospital in Jerusalem for more testing.My wife and I endeavor to teach our daughters the language of peace: love thy neighbor. We teach them that it is important to work to achieve peace. Hiba was shocked when the soldiers said that she had to go with them. She even laughed not believing that this was happening to her!I will never forget that moment when the soldiers arrested my wife, handcuffing her, and starting to move out of the house with her. I felt paralyzed—unable to give her my hand, unable to defend her. I am her man, her husband completely unable to protect her. At that moment I wished the ground would open to swallow me.During the arrest the soldiers acted politely. When I told the captain that my daughters were asleep, he asked the soldiers to be quiet so as not to wake them. In the morning when I woke up my daughters, I told them that their mom had travelled to Jordan to bring them gifts and that she would return soon. They didn’t believe me and began to cry and ask for their mother who usually wakes them up and fixes their breakfast.At 10 a.m., the Red Cross and Hamoked notified me that Hiba was in Ashkelon investigation center. Since her arrest my wife has not been allowed contact with her family or her lawyer. On Thursday she had a secret closed hearing. Again, she was not allowed legal counsel.We are a family that believes in peace and creating and strengthening ties with our neighbors. We are simple people. My wife Hiba has never harmed anyone. Please help us to get her released; to send her back home to her daughters Malak and Yara. Before they went to sleep that awful night, she had promised to take them to the park. Instead she was arrested and I took them to the park to try to ease their crying. My daughters are waiting for their mom. I whisper to them, “Don’t be scared. Your mom will be home soon.”I am much obliged to you for reading this letter. Please feel free to contact me for more information if needed at: +972 599 29 4988 (international calls), 0599 29 4988 (national calls) or by email: Budeir@hotmail.com. We very much appreciate your help.Regards,Khaled Budeir Links to the latest articles in this section Occupation forces injure mourners following funeral of slain infant Mohammad Tamimi Nabi Saleh village assaulted - toddler shot in the head died in hospital Palestinians in the snow: thrown from home into the snow, throw snowballs and get arrested