Amnesty International Takes on Case of Birzeit University Student

Call to Action, Right to Education Campaign, 5 February 2005

Amnesty International’s campaign against Israel’s use of administrative detention (imprisonment without charge or trial) has taken on the case of BirzeitUniversity student, Khader Qados. Khader, a student of Civil Engineering at Birzeit University, has been imprisoned without charge, trial, or access to any information relating to his case for over two years, in contravention of international law which explicitly states that “no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention”.

You can find details of Khader’s case and the Amnesty International campaign at http://web.amnesty.org/pages/isr-action-detention. Please support Amnesty’s international letter-writing campaign and write a letter to the Israeli authorities demanding Khader’s release.

Birzeit University Student Prisoners Campaign

The Right to Education Campaign at Birzeit University will soon be launching its own Student Prisoners Campaign on the Right to Education website http://right2edu.birzeit.edu.

Students in Palestinian universities are regularly targeted by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) and have been for many years. There are currently 76 Birzeit University student prisoners, 11 of them are being held without charge in administrative detention, and two-thirds of them have not been to trial.

Over the Eid Holiday last month, 7 Birzeit University students were arrested by the IOF, and two of them were placed directly under administrative detention.

On 19 December 2004, the President of Birzeit University Student Council, Fadi Hamad, was arrested.Fadi became the Student Council President after the previously elected President, Mohammad Quran, was also arrested. Mohammad was sentenced to 16 months in an Israeli prison, with the sole charge made against him being his activism in the Student Council. Currently, four out of the total eleven members on the Executive of Birzeit University Student Council are being held in Israeli prisons.

Student Prisoners in Administrative Detention on Strike

Over 800 Palestinian administrative detainees, held in Israeli military detention centers, are currently on strike against the illegality of prolonged detentions without charge or trial.

The strike against the Israeli Occupation’s military legal system began on 19 December 2004. The striking prisoners are refusing to take part in any military court proceedings, until the Israeli military authorities meet their demand that prisoners should be either charged or released after the maximum 6 month period of administrative detention has expired.

Birzeit University student, Khader Qados, is being held in Ketseot (Naqab) military detention center, where 782 out of the total 869 Palestinian administrative detainees are currently held:

* 18 have been held in administrative detention for over two-and-a-half years
* 100 have been held in administrative detention for over one-and-a-half years
* 148 have had their administrative detention orders extended more than once
* 15 are child prisoners (under 18 years old)

Take Action http://web.amnesty.org/pages/isr-action-detention

Please write to the Israeli authorities about the case of Birzeit University student Khader Qados, and demanding that they immediately and unconditionally release all administrative detainees held on account of their non-violent political opinions or activities, to release the others unless they are to be charged with a recognizable criminal offence and promptly tried in a proper court of law in accordance with internationally accepted standards for fair trial.