Amnesty International Condemns Denying Staff Member Entry to West Bank

Occupied Jerusalem, MINA – Amnesty International on Sunday condemned Israel’s decision to deny an Amnesty International USA staff member entry to the West Bank.

According to a statement issued by Amnesty International, Raed Jarrar, Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International USA, was stopped at the King Hussein crossing (Karama) between Jordan and the West Bank. He was on a personal trip to visit his family in Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) following the recent death of his father, PIC reported.

Jarrar was interrogated by Israeli officials about the reasons for his visit, his work with Amnesty International and in particular the organization’s denunciation of the Israeli settlements in the West Bank, before being denied entry and forced to return back to Jordan.

“The fact that Raed Jarrar was barred from entry after being interrogated about his work with Amnesty International appears to suggest that this move was taken in retaliation for the organization’s work on human rights violations in the OPT,” Philip Luther, Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East, said.

“This appears to be another ominous signal of the Israeli authorities’ resolve to silence human rights organizations and activists who are critical of the Israeli government. It flies in the face of the government’s repeated claims that Israel is a tolerant state, respectful of human rights.” he added.

“Refusing entry to a human rights advocate because he works for an organization that has criticized human rights violations by Israel would constitute a blatant assault on freedom of expression,” Philip Luther stated.(R/R04/RS5)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)