US Congress members demand end to Israel's detention of Palestinian children

American Democratic Congress members demanded yesterday that their Secretary of State pressure Israel to stop detaining Palestinian children in its military prisons.

In a press release, Minnesota’s Congresswoman Betty McCollum said that she and 18 other members of the House of Representatives sent a letter urging Secretary of State John Kerry to “prioritise the human rights of Palestinian children living in the occupied West Bank in the bilateral relationship with the government of Israel.”

The Congress members also noted in the letter that “Palestinian children should be treated exactly the same as Israeli or American children, without the fear that one day soldiers will arrest them, beat them, and lock them away in prison.”

In addition to this, the letter stressed: “The security interests of Israel are clearly a national security priority of the United States Congress and the American people. However, respecting and defending the human rights of children, regardless of their ethnicity, race, religion, or nationality is a fundamental American value, as well as a priority for all Americans that cannot be ignored.”

“Israel’s military detention of Palestinian children is an indefensible abuse of human rights. I hope this letter results in State Department pressure on the government of Israel to end this systemic abuse immediately,” McCollum stated.

The letter also cites the UNICEF 2013 report entitled “Children in Israeli Military Detention,” The report highlighted that “more than 7,000 Palestinian children ages 12 to 17 have been subject to military detention and abuse that violates international human rights standards.”