Badie Dweik threatened and beaten by Israeli Military Forces
On 9 August 2017, leading member of Human Rights Defenders Palestine, Badie Dweik was summoned for interrogation at Etzion on 14 August 2017 at 9.00 AM. On 4 August 2017, another co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders Group, Imad Abu Shamsiyya was arrested and detained overnight by Israeli forces after participating in a peaceful demonstration.
Badie Dweik is a human rights defender who organises campaigns for the protection of human rights defenders in Hebron and calls for an end to Israeli occupation. The human rights defender has established many NGOs that organise peaceful actions calling for the Palestinian right to self-determination. He is a leading member of Human Rights Defenders Palestine (تجمع المدافعين عن حقوق الانسان), which works to expose Israeli military and settler violations against the Palestinians in occupied Hebron. Badie Dweik also collaborates with the Hebron team of human rights observers brought by the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel. His work involves documenting and providing information on violations committed against Palestinians. He also provides training on protection for human rights defenders, particularly in the Hebron governorate.
On 9 August 2017, leading member of Human Rights Defenders Palestine, Badie Dweik was summoned for interrogation at Etzion on 14 August 2017 at 9.00 AM. On 4 August 2017, another co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders Group, Imad Abu Shamsiyya was arrested and detained overnight by Israeli forces after participating in a peaceful demonstration.
Badie Dweik is a co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders Palestine (تجمع المدافعين عن حقوق الانسان) group who organises campaigns and provides training for the protection of human rights defenders in Hebron. Human Rights Defenders Palestine is a Palestinian grassroots group which documents human rights violations associated with the Israeli occupation and its practices in the occupied West Bank, including Hebron. Badie Dweik also collaborates with the Hebron team of human rights observers brought by the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel. Imad Abu Shamsiyya is also a co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders Palestine, and works specifically on documentation and video recording of human rights violations committed against Palestinians. He is a long-standing activist in Palestine and is also a volunteer at B'Tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, where he is involved in documenting the occupation of Tel-Rumeida.
On 9 August 2017, Badie Dweik received a phone call from an Israeli intelligence officer summoning him for interrogation at Etzion detention centre on Monday 14 August 2017 at 9.00 AM. The facility is located in the illegal Gush Etzion settlement in the occupied West Bank. Human rights groups have reported instances of severe torture and ill treatment at the detention centre. The summons comes several days after a raid on the human rights defender’s home on 4 August 2017. During the raid, Badie Dweik was beaten, interrogated and threatened with arrest if he participated in the peaceful demonstration due to take place that same day in Khursa, Dura. The military commander also threatened the human rights defender with further raids on his home if he continued his work with the Human Rights Defenders Palestine group.
On 4 August 2017, Imad Abu Shamsiyya was arrested and detained by Israeli forces after participating in and documenting a peaceful ‘pray in’ demonstration in Khursa village in Hebron earlier that day. Military forces arrested him after conducting a raid on his home. He was taken for interrogation at Gilbert checkpoint, held overnight and released on 5 August 2017 without charge.
Front Line Defenders condemns the harassment of members of the Human Rights Defenders Palestine group, as it believes these actions to be directly connected with their peaceful and legitimate work in defence of human rights.
On 4 August 2017, Israeli soldiers conducted a raid of the home of Badie Dweik in Hebron. Israeli forces physically attacked the human rights defender and threatened him with arrest if he participates in a peaceful protest due to take place that same day at Khursa, Dura in Hebron.
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In the early morning of 4 August 2017, Israeli soldiers raided the home of Badie Dweik in Hebron. The Israeli soldiers entered the human rights defender’s home and forcibly dragged him down the stairs. Badie Dweik was beaten, interrogated and threatened with arrest if he participated in a peaceful protest due to take place that same day in Khursa, Dura. The military commander also threatened the human rights defender with continued raids on his home if he continues his work with Human Rights Defenders Group.
This is not the first raid that the human rights defender has been subjected to. On 24 February 2017, Israeli soldiers came to the home of Badie Dweik at around 1:00 am and threatened him and his colleagues with arrest if they participated in a peaceful protest taking place that same day as part of the “Dismantle the Ghetto, Take Settlers Out of Hebron” campaign. The human rights defender is regularly harassed and threatened by Israeli forces in an attempt to deter him from his human rights work. Two incidents were documented in 2016 showing Israeli soldiers harassing and intimidating Badie Dweik. In one incident, the human rights defender was prevented from walking in Hebron city. In the other incident, a soldier threatened Badie Dweik and his family at their home while they were held at gun point.
Front Line Defenders would also like to highlight the increased repression of human rights defenders and civil society in the OPT. In particular, Front Line Defenders is concerned by the increasing number of raids being conducted in recent weeks by military forces on media institutions documenting rights violations against Palestinians. Additionally, intimidation, arbitrary arrests, beatings, threats, and interrogation have been reported by MADA (The Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms).
Front Line Defenders condemns the raid, threats and physical attack against human rights defender Badie Dweik by Israeli authorities as it believes these actions to be directly connected with his peaceful and legitimate work in defense of human rights.
Front Line Defenders urges the Israeli authorities to:
1. Carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the intimidation and threats against Badie Dweik, with a view to publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards;
2. Stop all forms of harassment against Badie Dweik and all other human rights defenders in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and in Hebron specifically;
3. Ensure the safety of Badie Dweik and all other human rights defenders in the Occupied Palestinian Territory;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.
