clear

Creating new perspectives since 2009

Father of cancer-stricken Palestinian child detained by Israel forces

Before being taken away, the father of four bid an emotional farewell to his son who was lying on a sofa.

September 15, 2021 at 10:10 am

An image of Palestinian father Hijazi Qawasmeh kissing his 11-year-old son who is battling cancer, moments before occupation forces detained him, have gone viral on social media.

Thirty-seven-year-old Qawasmeh was among 23 Palestinians detained on Tuesday in the occupation’s campaign that targeted Palestinians across the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem.

Before being taken away, the father of four bid an emotional farewell to his son who was lying on a sofa.

Local sources said that occupation forces also broke into and ransacked Qawasmeh’s store located in Al-Eizariya town, in occupied East Jerusalem.

His son, Ahmed, wrote on Facebook: “Israeli occupation army detained my dad. May Allah set you free and return you to us safely.”

Ahmed has been undergoing treatment for the past seven months, and was supposed to receive chemotherapy in Jerusalem yesterday, however the session was postponed.

His mother explained that while he normally received chemotherapy six days a week, his mental health had deteriorated following his father’s arrest, Middle East Eye reported.

READ: From the ‘Iron Wall’ to the ‘Villa in the Jungle’, Palestinians demolish Israel’s security myths