Palestinian students from the Hamas-affiliated Islamic Bloc list at Bir Zeit University on Saturday began an open-ended sit-in strike on campus to protest the arrest of three of their colleagues by Palestinian Authority security forces.
In a statement, the Islamic Bloc named the three students as Yahya Farah, Abdel Ghani Fares and Abdullah Abu Qayyas. It said that the PA security forces also attempted to arrest Osama Abu Eid, coordinator of the Islamic Bloc, but were unsuccessful.
Ahmed Farah, the brother of one of the arrested students, was detained on Saturday by PA security officers while he was on his way to take part in a press conference organized by the Islamic Bloc at Bir Zeit University.
“We strongly condemn the arrest and brutal torture of our colleagues,” the Islamic Bloc said, holding the Palestinian security forces and the PA leadership responsible for their safety.
The Islamic Bloc also denounced the Bir Zeit University administration for its “silence” towards the arrests and urged it to take a clear stance on the issue.
Birzeit University near Ramallah. (credit: Wikimedia Commons)Islamic Bloc representatives held a press conference on Saturday during which they announced the sit-in strike and demanded the release of their colleagues.
Protestors called for the release of Lions’ Den leader
The students chanted slogans in which they accused the PA of carrying out politically-motivated arrests. They also chanted slogans calling for the release of Mosab Shtayyeh, a senior Hamas operative and one of the founders of the Lions’ Den armed group in Nablus.
Shtayyeh was arrested by PA security forces in Nablus in September 2022. His arrest sparked armed clashes between gunmen and PA security forces in the city. One Palestinian was killed and several others injured during the clashes.
Earlier this month, the PA security forces also arrested Tareq al-Haj Ali, an employee of Bir Zeit University. His wife, Manar Nakhleh, said Palestinian security officers also confiscated his car. Ali had been previously arrested by the PA security forces for his alleged affiliation with Hamas.
A lawyer who met Ali in prison said he too complained that he had been tortured.
A PA security source confirmed that the three university students had been arrested, but refused to provide further details.
Last month, the Islamic Bloc won the student council elections at Bir Zeit University, north of Ramallah, securing 25 of the council’s 51 seats. A student list affiliated with the ruling Fatah faction headed by PA President Mahmoud Abbas won 20 seats.
It was the second victory of a Hamas-affiliated student list in May. At An-Najah University in Nablus, the Islamic Bloc won a majority of 40 seats, while their rivals in Fatah secured 38 seats.
In March, another Hamas-affiliated list won the majority of seats at Palestine Polytechnic University in Hebron.
The mother of Yahya Farah, one of the students arrested by the PA security forces, claimed that her son had been beaten and tortured. She said her son told her when he was brought to court that the PA interrogators warned him not to tell anyone about the physical torture. According to the mother, a judge ordered the release of her son, but the PA security forces refused to comply. “Because we live in a jungle, Yahya is still being tortured in a prison cell,” she said.
The Democratic Progressive Bloc, the student branch of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine at Bir Zeit University, which won six seats in last month’s elections, accused the PA security services of “intentionally and increasingly” targeting university students. “Political arrests are a crime that must stop,” the group said in a statement.
The Ramallah-based Lawyers for Justice group said it was concerned about the increase in the number of “political arrests” carried out by the PA security forces in the West Bank, especially in the aftermath of the student council elections.
It said at least 19 Palestinians were arrested in May for their political and factional affiliation, while another eight were taken into custody by the PA security forces for their participation in “illegal gatherings” and activities within the framework of various unions. Another three Palestinians were arrested for freedom of expression, the group added.
Comments are closed.