Tag Archives for Mahmoud Sarsak

Why Spain’s greatest football match, El Clásico, matters to Palestinians

Lionel Messi’s No.10 shirt is a favourite among young Palestinians

Jon Donnison, from the BBC,  reports from Gaza city on the controversy of tonight’s El Clásico after the decisin of the Barça board of directors to accept issuing a VIP invitation to former Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

In Palestine, the acceptance of two Fatah representatives to attend the game and Mahmoud Sarsak’s refusal to be present in the stadium, together with the decison by Hamas not to broadcast Barça games in the Gaza strip anymore, are going to be something Palestinians will surely be talking about too.

Shukran Mahmoud Sarsak!

After all the mess  regarding the next Clásico on 7 October, Mahmoud Sarsak has decided not to take part in something that smells too much of normalisation. In this video, Gaza youth explain the reasons for this decision and thank Sarsak for not normalising with apartheid Israel.

You still have time to sign the petition for Barça not to accept the invitation of ex-IDF Gilad Shalit at Camp Nou (in català, castellano and English).

Escorrent el bulto…

Avui a l’Assemblea General del Barça el President Sandro Rossell ha negat que s’hagués invitat l’ex-soldat israelià Gilad Shalit. És més, ha dit que tot ha estat una invenció de la premsa.

Això se li diu popularment “escórrer el bulto”.

No se sap si hi ha hagut alguna trucada desde Qatar Foundation, esponsor del Barça (però deixeu-m’ho dubtar tenint en compte quin peu calça l’elit de Qatar), o es tracta d’un altre triomf de la campanya de Boicot, Desinversions i Sancions (BDS) a l’estat d’Israel mentre no compleixi amb la legalitat internacional. Serà difícil saber-ho del cert.

Sigui com sigui, el més important és que Gilad Shalit no serà al Camp Nou el proper 7 d’octubre.

Després de tot l’enrenou ara el que hauríem de fer és pressionar el Barça perquè inviti el Mahmoud Sarsak, el jove jove futbolista de Gaza empresonat durant quasi 3 anys per Israel que va ser alliberat el passat 10 de juliol després de 3 mesos de vaga de fam.

Avui la bandera del Barça m’agermana, però la directiva del Barça gens ni mica.

Avui la bandera del Barça NO m’agermana

Tal i com publica avui el diari El Triangle, La junta directiva del Barça presidida per Sandro Rossell ha invitat el soldat israelià Gilat Shalit a la llotja del Camp Nou per veure el proper Barça – Madrid el 7 d’octubre.

Per què el Barça no ha fet mai cap gest cap als 164 menors palestins que, tal i com denuncia UNICEF, estan tancats a presons israelianes, molts d’ells pel simple fet de llençar pedres?

Per què el Barça opta per convidar Gilat Shalit, el segrest del qual per part de Hamas va ser utilitzat com a excusa per Israel per massacrar Gaza des de l’aire a finals del 2008 – principis del 2009, però va callar durant la vaga de fam de Mahmoud Sarsak, futbolista de la selecció palestina que ha estat empresonat injustament per Israel durant anys i que mai més podrà dedicar-se professionalment al futbol a causa de les seqüel·les dels més de cent dies de vaga de fam que va dur a terme protestant per la detenció injustificada de palestins per part d’Israel?

Algú em pot contestar?

No n’hi havia prou amb el Guardiola passejant-se per Barcelona i per Israel (Palestina del 48) amb la Noa, ni amb la Shakira acompanyada del Piqué fent discursets juntament amb el govern israelià sobre els drets humans. Per si no n’hi hagués prou ara toca invitar a un soldat de l’exèrcit d’Israel, de l’exèrcit més ètic de la única democràcia de l’Orient Mitjà, per seguir normalitzant el que es viu a l’altra banda del Mediterrani amb la complicitat dels que s’omplen la boca de democràcia i justícia.

Quina vergonya. Quina ràbia. Quin fàstic. Avui la bandera del Barça NO m’agermana.

Si aquesta notícia et provoca el mateix que a mi, actua! Pots posar-te en contacte amb el grup de BDS Catalunya per email (info@bdscatalunya.org) o a través de Twitter (@BDSCatalunya). Fem-nos sentir!

Lawyer says Mahmoud Sarsak will be freed July 10th and has finished his hunger strike

Even if the news are still very unclear, it seems that Mahmoud Sarsak could have put an end to his hunger strike and agreed to be freed on July the 10th.

To know more, read the article published in The Electronic Intifada below.

Ismael Mohamad / United Press International

Israel to free footballer Mahmoud Sarsak after epic 3-month hunger strike, lawyer says

Submitted by Ali Abunimah on Mon, 06/18/2012 – 18:11

Mahmoud Sarsak, the Palestinian national footballer player who gathered worldwide attention with a three-month hunger strike that brought him to the brink of death, is to be freed by Israel on 10 July, the Associated Press quoted his lawyer as saying today:

RAMALLAH, West Bank—A lawyer for an imprisoned Palestinian soccer player who has been on a hunger strike for more than three months says his client has agreed to resume eating and will be released July 10 in a deal with Israel.

The attorney, Mohammed Jabareen, spoke Monday after the deal was struck at an Israeli prison clinic. Israeli prison officials could not be reached for comment.

The soccer player, Mahmoud Sarsak, has been held by Israel for nearly three years without charges or trial. Israel claims he was active in the violent group Islamic Jihad. Sarsak denies the allegations.

Last Sarsak, who was critically ill and near death, had agreed to take milk for a few days to allow time for Israel to reconsider his demands.

Reasons for caution

If the reported deal is implemented, it would mark a major victory for Sarsak, who despite never being charged with any crime, has been maligned in the media as a “terrorist” by Israeli officials.

There are reasons for caution, however. Even if a deal has been struck, Israel has been reneging on an agreement ended a month-long mass Palestinian hunger strike in May.

Over 1 month has passed since mass hunger strike ended & family visits to Gaza prisoners have not resumed, in contravention to agreement.

Moreover, there is no word on Akram Rikhawi who is on his 68th day of hunger strike, and who was already in poor health.

Global Solidarity

In recent weeks, Sarsak, 25, gathered worldwide attention and support, including from top athletes Fréderic Kanouté and two dozen other athletic stars, football legend Eric Cantona and FIFA President Sepp Blatter, and FIFPro, the international association of professional football players.

Cantona, and other prominent international figures, even called on UEFA to reconsider its decision to allow Israel to host the 2013 Under 21 tournament.

Grassroots support continues

While the high-level support undoubtedly helped raise the pressure on Israel, grassroots actions have helped keep Sarsak’s struggle in the public eye, despite a dearth of international media attention.

Among the latest solidarity actions, fans in Edinburgh cheered loudly for Sarsak at a Scotland-Israel Euro 2013 women’s football qualifier. As Scotland thrashed Israel 8-0, the fans waved Palestinian flags and banners and shouted “Free Mahmoud Sarsak” and “Free Palestine,” video shows.

Other solidarity actions have taken place in Casablanca and in the French city of Bordeaux where solidarity protestors demonstrated and played football inside a Carrefour supermarket that sells Israeli goods.

Palestine solidarity activists protest inside a Carrefour supermarket in Bordeaux, calling for Israel to free Mahmoud Sarsak.

(CAPJPO-EuroPalestine)

Israeli military refuser joins hunger strike

Israeli refuser Yaaniv Mazor in solitary confinement on 7th day of hunger strike in solidarity with Pal prisoners

Meanwhile, an Israeli army reservist in jail for refusing to serve in the army, has launched his own hunger strike in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners, Haaretz reported:

An Israel Defense Forces reserves soldier, who has refused to partake in army duty to protest Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories, has gone on hunger strike in military prison, in what he said was a show of solidarity with Palestinian administrative detainees.

Yaniv Mazor, a 31-year-old Jerusalem resident, was sentenced last week to 20 days in jail over his refusal to fill any position, be it combat or otherwise, in what he said was the occupying army. He was transferred to the IDF’s Tzrifin prison on Monday, launching his hunger strike the following day.

In a phone conversation with his attorney Michael Sfard on Friday, Mazor said that he had “become appalled over the last few months by the hunger strike initiated by Palestinian administrative prisoners, but I couldn’t do much about it.”

“I decided to start a hunger strike in solidarity [with the Palestinians], and in order to raise awareness on the issue of administrative detention, and not to prompt my own release,” Mazor added.

Finally FIFA says something on Mahmoud Sarsak’s case…

As reported in the FIFA website on Tuesday 12th June:

FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter expressed today (12 June) grave concern and worry about the alleged illegal detention of Palestine football players.

The reports FIFA received state that in apparent violation of their integrity and human rights and without the apparent right of a due process (trial), several Palestine football players have allegedly been illegally detained by Israeli authorities. In particular, the mentioned reports refer to the Palestine player Mahmoud Sarsak, whose health is in a very delicate state due to the fact that he has been undergoing a hunger strike for approximately 90 days in protest of his alleged illegal detention.

Due to the aforementioned graveness of the situation, FIFA urgently calls on IFA to draw the attention of the Israeli competent authorities to the present matter, with the aim of ensuring the physical integrity of the concerned players as well as their right for due process. The matter came to FIFA’s attention following correspondence with the Palestine Football Association, several international media reports concerning the football player Mahmoud Sarsak and a FIFPro media release.

Futbolistas españoles se solidarizan con Mahmoud Sarsak

Varios futbolistas españoles se solidarizan con Mahmoud Sarsak, futbolista palestino en huelga de hambre desde el 19 de marzo. Sarsak se declaró en huelga de hambre en protesta por su detención en centros penitenciarios israelíes desde el año 2009. Es el único palestino detenido bajo la ‘Unlawful combatant law’ de Israel, sin acusación formal y por lo tanto sin derecho a defensa.

Lee el artículo en la página web de la RESCOP.

World leaders silent while Mahmoud Sarsak enters his 84 day of hunger strike

Human rights groups have warned that Mahmoud al-Sarsak faces imminent danger of death.

Sarsak is a 25 years old Palestinian footballer from a refugee camp in Gaza who today Sunday 10 June has entered his 84 day of hunger strike in an Israeli prison.

Once a star player in the Palestinian national team, Sarsak was arrested under the ‘Unlawful combatants’ law’ as he left the Gaza Strip en route to a match in the West Bank in 2009. He had obtained the necessary permission by Israel to travel through Erez checkpoint and enter the West Bank.

Mahmoud Sarsak has since 2009 been held in Israeli prisons without trial or charge. He is the only person arrested under the ‘Unlawful combatants’ law’ and he doesn’t yet know what Israel accuses him of. He’s detained under worse conditions than his 308 fellows under administrative detentions.

They are all kept in prison without being charged. Israel can (and does so) extend their detention orders indefinitely. Since they are not formally accused, they can’t defend themselves.

Mahmoud Sarsak is one of a handful of Palestinian political prisoners who have rejected the so-called ‘deal’ with Israel that on May 14 ended a mass hunger strike of Palestinian political prisoners that had started on April 17 marking Prisoners’ Day.

The ‘deal’ did not put an end to administrative detentions nor to detentions under the ‘Unlawful combatants’ law’. Israel did not even guarantee the most basic human rights of Palestinian prisoners.

Since the signature of the ‘deal’, Israel has violated the agreement in numerous occasions.

Meanwhile, the 2012 Euro Cup has kicked off. So far no comments from UEFA.

Date of Birth: 20 January 1987
Place of residence: Rafah Refugee Camp, Gaza
Occupation: University student and member of the Palestinian national football team
Date of arrest: 22 July 2009
Place of detention: Ramleh prison medical center
For more information on Mahmoud Sarsak, please check his profile in Addameer.

May 2012 in pictures

In May 2012, Palestinian political prisoners ended a historic 28-day mass hunger strike that began on 17 April — Palestinian Prisoners’ Day. Demonstrations in support of the hunger strike took place throughout historic Palestine. Several political prisoners maintained their hunger strike after the agreement was struck with Israeli prison authorities; Mahmoud Sarsak and Akram Rikhawi have been on hunger strike for 79 and 60 days, respectively.

The annual Nakba commemorations, which mark the ethnic cleansing of Palestine with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, take place each May. Israeli authorities responded to annual Nakba commemorations and counter-demonstrations to nationalist Israeli celebrations with violence. May 2012 also witnessed a wave of attacks on African refugees and asylum-seekers; a right-wing rally in Tel Aviv on 23 May turned into a violent anti-African pogrom incited by members of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset.

The Month in Pictures is a monthly feature from The Electronic Intifada documenting Palestine, Palestinian life, politics and culture, and international solidarity with Palestine.

Women confront appointed Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad at a solidarity tent erected in support of hunger striking Palestinian prisoners in the West Bank city of Nablus, 6 May. (Wagdi Eshtayah / APA images)