Samer Allawi is the head of Al Jazeera's Afghanistan office. Allawi has lived in Pakistan since 1984, though originally from the West Bank and Palestinian, and worked in Afghanistan as long. While on his way home from visiting family in the West Bank, Allawi was detained by the Israeli military. He has not been charged, but is suspected of participation in Hamas. Allawi, Al Jazeera, and many others continuously reaffirm that he has no criminal record and is not politically active, but he has been held for six weeks without charge by the Israeli military in various prisons. Human Rights Watch is calling for his release along with Al Jazeera, and his family. The Israeli officers have threatened Allawi in attempts to force a confession, which he still resists. His lawyer has been barred from visiting with him and his family has not been allowed to see him at all throughout this process. Allawi's family has taken up temporary residence in the West Bank to stay near him regardless of their inability to visit him. Israel, as a state that has signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, should know that they are required to inform any person detained of charges immediately upon arrest and that they cannot withhold council.
This action by Israel goes against the basic legal human rights that are recognized. First, the right to due process, or innocent before proven guilty. Samer Allawi has not even been told what he has been accused of specifically or when they will finally charge or release him. Second, his right to fair trial has been infringed upon in that they will not even allow him to seek his council at all at the given moment. Third, freedom from violence. Allawi has been threatened multiple times in attempt to garner a confession, which he refuses to give as he is likely innocent. Fourth and finally, the right to have a family has been taken from him. The Israeli prisons are refusing him the opportunity to see his family at all. I, personally, find this appalling. It seems that Israel is only holding him because he is Palestinian and has a high profile job. From what I can gather, he has never shown any allegiance to any islamist or terrorist movement. He works for one of the most impartial news stations in the world and has not lived in the West Bank since 1984, which is 27 years ago. It seems absurd to spontaneously detain someone that shows no traits or leanings towards these groups at all. It is also entirely against the alleged values of the Israeli government to carry out such actions with a person. They have signed onto many international documents concerning human rights and the rights of people detained within their borders. To what most would say the most progressive state in the Middle East, it seems like it is doing many of the same things that it's assumed adversaries would do in similar situations.
Do you think that Israel is justified in detaining Samer Allawi? Should he be released immediately if there is not enough evidence to support actual charges? Is there an underlying reason to Israel's actions due to the current vote in the United Nations on the possibility of a Palestinian state?
There seems to be no reason at all for him to be detained: no political activism, no record, and no ties to terrorist forces. It almost just sticks right out at you that the sole reason is that he is Palestinian, and Palestine's statehood request to the U.N. (in which their success seems highly doubtful) may be an underlying cause. Also, as I'm sure everyone knows in some form or another, "values" are almost non-existent in countries. Regimes and bureaucracies do what they think is necessary to ensure that the "national interest" is served. Politicians and governments claim to have morals, but when it comes down to it, they do whatever it takes to make themselves and their constituents successful.
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