Israel military court imprisons Palestinian student despite brain disease

A female journalism student was sentenced to four-and-a-half months in prison yesterday by an Israeli military court despite suffering from hydrocephalus, which requires regular drainage of fluid from her head. According to the Palestinian Prisoner Society, Dina Jarada, 23, has also been fined 6,000 Israeli shekels ($1760).

Jarada was arrested on 7 August and was scheduled to have a hearing on 5 September. However, it was postponed due to her deteriorating health.

Instead of receiving care for her condition, though, she was sent to Damon Prison before being taken to Rambam Hospital in Haifa, only to be returned to the prison. Her prison sentence appears to be part of an ongoing Israeli crackdown on Palestinian journalists.

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Last month, the Palestine Journalists’ Syndicate (PJS) revealed that the Israeli occupation authorities committed “at least” 479 violations against Palestinian journalists during the first half of 2022.

“The Israeli army and security forces’ violations included the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh,” said the syndicate. “Journalists’ work in Palestine is under attack. We renew our call on relevant international and human rights organisations to take decisive action to stop the targeting of journalists by the occupation forces.”

Commenting on the PJS report, the International Federation of Journalists pointed out that it has “repeatedly condemned the deliberate targeting of journalists and media facilities by Israel and submitted a formal complaint to the [International Criminal Court] in early April 2022.”