Bahar praises Red Cross’s role in protecting Jerusalem MPs

Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) first deputy speaker Dr. Ahmed Bahar praised the International Red Cross for its “wise” decision to provide protection for the Jerusalem MPs threatened to be deported. This came during a visit by a Red Cross delegation to the PLC headquarters in Gaza on Monday when Bahar praised the Red Cross for the protection and services it provides for the MPs at its Jerusalem headquarters.

The MPs from Jerusalem have been sitting in for weeks at the Red Cross headquarters after the Israeli government passed a decision to deport them.

Bahar discussed Israel’s race-driven crackdowns against Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails which prompted the recent hunger strike as part of a series of protests against the Israeli prison system.

Bahar called on the Red Cross to exercise its international legal ability to monitor cases of Israeli violations against civilians located in Jerusalem and the West Bank, especially against elected officials.

In a separate development, dozens of Palestinian women took part in a sit-in rally staged by the Hamas women’s movement on Monday morning in front of the Red Cross headquarters in Gaza to show support for Palestinian POWs in Israeli jails.

Palestinian prisoners minister Mohammed Faraj al-Ghoul said the Palestinian government will not give up in the prisoners cause, saying: “We announced this year that we will deliver their voice to the entire world.”

Ghoul praised the Palestinian women for their role in supporting the prisoner cause and their persistence in standing every Monday in front of the Red Cross in an effort to free their sons and husbands in Israeli jails.

Umm Mohammed, who is one of the demonstrators, said that 750 Palestinians currently languish in PA jails in the West Bank against 7,000 in Israeli prisons.