[Ppnews] Criticism of Israel as Khader Adnan on day 65 of hunger strike

Political Prisoner News ppnews at freedomarchives.org
Mon Feb 20 11:34:13 EST 2012



Roseanne Barr and former Obama official join 
criticism of Israel as Khader Adnan on day 65 of hunger strike

Submitted by Ali Abunimah on Mon, 02/20/2012 - 11:24
http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/roseanne-barr-and-former-obama-official-join-criticism-israel-khader-adnan-day-65


American actress and comedian 
<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Roseanne_Barr&oldid=476541874>Roseanne 
Barr and former Obama administration State 
Department official Anne-Marie Slaugher are among 
the growing number of people to join criticism of 
Israel’s use of administrative detentions of 
Palestinians highlighted by the 65 day hunger 
strike of <http://electronicintifada.net/tags/khader-adnan>Khader Adnan.

Meanwhile, social media campaigns have helped 
bring more attention to Adnan’s fight, even 
though time for him may be running out.

Adnan is gravely ill, and 
<http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/solidarity-hunger-strikers-israeli-jails-face-harsh-punishment-prisoner-says>his 
lawyers fear he may not live until 23 February, 
when the Israeli high court has agreed to hear a 
petition against his detention without charge or 
trial. Adnan was seized from his West Bank home 
by Israeli occupation forces on 17 December. 
Israel says Adnan is a member of the Palestinian 
group Islamic Jihad, but has not charged him with any crime.

On Sunday, Twitter users trended the hashtag 
#KhaderExists to the number one spot worldwide to 
bring attention to Adnan’s hunger strike.

Slaughter, 
<http://www.princeton.edu/%7Eslaughtr/>a 
professor at Princeton University, who served as 
Director of Policy Planning for the United States 
Department of State from 2009-2011 tweeted, 
“#KhaderExists and should be charged or released” 
and provided a link to a 
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/12/palestinian-hunger-striker-shackled>12 
February 
Guardian<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/12/palestinian-hunger-striker-shackled> 
article on his case.

Anne-Marie Slaughter Israel shackles Palestinian 
hunger striker Khader Adnan 
<http://t.co/dKaDkC2H>http://t.co/dKaDkC2H via 
<http://twitter.com/guardian>@guardian 
<http://search.twitter.com/search?q=%23KhaderExists>#KhaderExists 
and should be charged or released.
<http://twitter.com/SlaughterAM/status/171315987621232641>Feb 19

Roseanne Barr tweeted, “G-d bless Khadar Adnan, 
and the people of Israel/Palestine.”

Roseanne Barr I am against ALL governments who 
hold people indefintely without charges, trials 
or recourse. It’s barbaric& needs 2 stop.
<http://twitter.com/TheRealRoseanne/status/171477943258857473>Feb 20 via web

The cumulative attention on Twitter helped propel 
signatures on an 
<http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action-Israel-End-use-of-administrative-detention%20>Amnesty 
International online petition from just under 
1,500 to over 2,500 in a few hours.

On her radio show that evening 
(<http://kcaaradio.celestrion.net/kcaa-podcasts/roseanne/20120219.html>begins 
at the 66 minute mark on this podcast), Barr, who 
is considering running for president of the United States, said:

Today if you follow me on Twitter, people are 
talking about Khader Adnan who is in his 64th day 
of a hunger strike in an Israeli prison.

In further comments she added,

Something that bugs me is that we were talking 
about Khader Adnan and the State of Israel, and 
the how they are detaining and arresting people 
without charge for a long time. And that is such 
a terrible thing. And of course I just want to 
make the point that it’s a terrible thing and 
that should be removed from this world from 
everywhere that it exists and it’s something people can rally behind.

Adnan, who is actually under guard shackled to 
his bed at Ziv hospital in Safad, is one of more 
than 300 “administrative detainees” held 
indefinitely by Israel without charge or trial. 
This number includes 21 members of the 
Palestinian Legislative Council that was 
democratically elected in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2006.


A song for Khader Adnan and Bobby Sands

Khader Adnan’s hunger strike – the longest in the 
history of Palestine – has reminded many of the 
historic Irish hunger strikes of 1980-81.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Rovics&oldid=475928445>David 
Rovics, an American independent musician, 
recorded a song called “Khader Adnan, Bobby 
Sands.” The song draws a comparison between 
Adnan’s strike and that of 
<http://www.bobbysandstrust.com/>Bobby Sands, who 
died after 66 days hunger strike in Belfast’s 
Maze Prison. He was one of ten Irish hunger strikes who died.

Rovics’ song includes the lyrics:

They say Khader Adnan is a terrorist
Just like they said of Bobby Sands
Because he dares speak out against injustice
Because he dares to make a stand
Because he dares believe that he is human
And he does not deserve to live this way
Because he dares to consider an alternative
Because he dares imagine a new day

Former Irish hunger strikers 
<http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/linah-alsaafin/video-raymond-mccartney-former-irish-hunger-striker-message-support-khader>Raymond 
McCartney and 
<http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/video-former-irish-hunger-strikers-message-khader-adnan-palestinian-prisoner-55>Tommy 
McKearney, and 
<http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/video-solidarity-khader-adnan-family-late-irish-hunger-striker-francis-hughes>Oliver 
Hughes who is the brother Francis Hughes and 
cousin of Thomas McElwee, both of whom died on 
hunger strike, have all recorded video messages 
of solidarity. The family of Irish hunger striker 
Raymond McCreesh, who died after 61 days on 
hunger strike, are the latest to send 
<http://gazatvnews.com/2012/02/khader-adnan-receive-message-of-support-from-mccreesh-family/>a 
message of support to Khader Adnan calling for an 
end to administrative detention.

In Belfast over the weekend, Sinn Féin activists 
and members of Belfast Friends of Palestine 
<http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/benjamin-doherty/video-belfast-vigil-khader-adnan>held 
a vigil outside the City Hall to support Palestinian Khader Adnan.

Today, Michelle Gildernew, the Sinn Féin Member 
of Parliament for Fermanagh and South Tyrone also 
released <http://youtu.be/bnSKHJ3Qejo>a video 
message of solidarity with Khader Adnan.


As Khader Adnan trends globally, media slow on the uptake

While traditional media finally seem to be slowly 
waking up to Khader Adnan’s struggle, and the 
plight of hundreds of other detainees arbitrarily 
held by Israel, much of the momentum bringing 
attention to the case has been through social media.

For three days running, supporters of Adnan have 
managed to push hashtags related to his name into 
the top global trends, hoping that journalists 
and others will begin to pay attention.

The effort to trend Khader Adnan will be repeated 
again today, Monday, at 2PM US Eastern Time/ 7PM 
UK Time/ 9 PM Palestine Time, and those 
interested in participating can follow the @KhaderAdnan Twitter account.

A 
<http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=258504>remarkably 
fair article in 
<http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=258504>The 
Jerusalem Post, focused on Adnan’s pregnant wife 
Randa, who is the mother of the couple’s two 
young daughters Maali and Beisan. Randa Adnan has 
become her husband’s de facto media spokesperson, 
a task she admitted was challenging:

“The worst part of it is the lack of objective 
news reporting. Sometimes, some [reporters] use 
half of what I say and change the meaning of what I say,” she said.

On 
<http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2012/02/20/a-hunger-striker-at-deaths-door-turns-up-the-heat-on-israel-and-on-the-palestinian-leadership/>TIME’s 
Global Spin blog, Tony Karon also commented on 
the case noted that Adnan’s case has been largely ignored:

only as his death appears to draws near has his 
plight begun to register on the international radar.

The BBC 
(“<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17092051>Palestinian 
Khader Adnan hunger strike in Israel into 10th 
week”) and CNN 
(“<http://articles.cnn.com/2012-02-18/middleeast/world_meast_israel-palestinian-detainee_1_hunger-strike-israeli-human-rights-group-detentions?_s=PM:MIDDLEEAST>Palestinian’s 
hunger strike puts spotlight on Israeli 
detentions”) both carried stories on their websites.

And while The New York Times, 
<http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/palestinian-challenges-detention-by-israel-with-hunger-strike/>with 
the exception of its The Lede blog, continues to 
ignore the case, The Washington Post ran a story 
on Khader Adnan on 18 February: 
“<http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/palestinian-prisoner-on-hunger-strike-poses-challenge-for-israel/2012/02/18/gIQAma05LR_story.html>Palestinian 
prisoner on hunger strike poses challenge for Israel.”




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