Abdul Latif Ghaith, 70, the Chair of the Board of Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, former administrative detainee, and longtime activist, was once again prohibited from travelling outside Jerusalem in a military order renewed on September 15, 2012.
The order, signed by Nitzan Alon, a commander of the Israeli Occupation Forces in the West Bank, prohibits Ghaith from entering the West Bank for undeclared “security reasons.” The order is in effect until March 15, 2013. It is important to note that Ghaith received an order from the Israeli Ministry of Defense prohibiting him from travel abroad approximately one month ago.
Ghaith, responding to these orders, said that “the occupation is targeting national, community, religious, and academic leaders in Jerusalem, in order to intimidate Jerusalemites and empty the city of its leading advocates. These racist orders are part of the total war waged by Israel on Jerusalem, a systematic policy of ethnic cleansing.” Ghaith added that “it is time for all of the forces of the international community, and all who claim to care about human rights and democracy in America and the colonialist West to end their silence and compel Israel to respect, apply and implement laws, international conventions and agreements, instead of supporting Israel as a state above the law.”
Addameer and the Association of Democratic Journalists will hold a vigil in support of Ghaith, who, in addition to his leadership with Addameer is a co-founder of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate and the Association of Democratic Journalists, on Monday, September 24 at 11 am in Ramallah, in front of the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights office.
