Calls grow for release of Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Manasra

Several social media users have launched a campaign seeking details about the fate of Palestinian prisoner Ahmad Manasra, who was arrested by the Israeli occupation forces in 2015 when he was only 13 years old.

Manasra and his 15-year-old cousin were accused of stabbing two Israelis in the illegal Pisgat Ze’ev settlement in the occupied West Bank. His cousin was shot dead at the scene, whereas Ahmad was hit by a car and sustained serious head injuries while an Israeli crowd jeered at him.

Following his arrest, video footage widely circulated on social media showed a young, distressed Ahmad being harshly treated and severely interrogated without the presence of his parents or legal representatives. He was mistreated during the early years of his detention to the point he was later diagnosed with schizophrenia. A group of 36 psychologists have appealed to the Israeli president to pardon Ahmad due to his mental health.

According to his lawyer, Ahmad is currently receiving intensive psychological treatment from the Israeli occupation, the details of which are unknown, adding that Ahmad should be among the first to be released as part of the deal between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli occupation authorities.

Khaled Zabarqa added that the criteria on which the occupation authorities decided not to release Ahmad are unclear. Ahmad, he continued, has served most of his ten-year sentence.

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