Defend Palestinian Children!
Washington, DC | www.adc.org | November 17, 2017 – ADC strongly commends Congresswoman Betty McCollum’s (D-MN) for introducing the first-ever legislation on Palestinian human rights in Congressional history. The Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act, H.R. 4391, will “prevents the use of United States tax dollars for the Israeli military’s ongoing detention and mistreatment of Palestinian children.” (Click here to read the full bill.) H.R. 4391 has nine Democratic cosponsors, including the co-chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
ACT NOW TO DEFEND PALESTINIAN CHILDREN
Since 2000, an estimated 10,000 Palestinian children have been detained by Israeli occupation forces and often subject to abuse and torture. Those worst abuses, of course, are the lethal attacks on Palestinian children: 2022 Palestinian children have been killed by Israeli soldiers or illegal settlers since 2000.
According to Defense of Children International, this year 10 Palestinian children have been killed:
Yousef Salameh 16 years old
Mohammed Khattab, 17 years old
Jasem Nakhleh, 16 years old
Yousef Abu Athra, 15 years old
Murad Abu Ghazi, 17 years old
Fatima Hjeiji, 17 years old
Abdel-Rahman Abu Hamisa, 16 years old
Mohammed Lafi, 17 years old
Nour Abd-Jabar, 14 years old
Oday Nawaja’a, 16 years old
Above, many of the Palestinian children killed or injured this year.
ACT NOW TO DEFEND PALESTINIAN CHILDREN
Tragically, injuries are an even more frequent occurrence. On Sept. 11, 15-year-old Osama Daghlas was dragged and beaten by Israeli settlers before he was thrown off a stone fence.
There can be no doubt that the pro-Israel lobby will now target McCollum and the cosponsors. And there will be tremendous pressure on other Democrats to not cosponsor the bill. It is imperative that Arab-American make their voices heard to support McCollum and the other cosponsors: Representatives Mark Pocan, Earl Blumenauer, André Carson, John Conyers, Jr., Danny K. Davis, Peter A. DeFazio, Raul Grijalva, Luis V. Gutiérrez, and Chellie Pingree.
We must build momentum for this historic bill. Let us rally our community so that even more Congresspersons find the courage to stand up for Palestinian human rights. We may not win this battle, but if we support H.R. 4391 and successfully encourage more Congresspersons to sign-on, then next time we will be that much closer to turning the tide toward a foreign policy based on human rights and international law.
Call your Congressional representatives, send e-mails and letters, and urge them to stand with McCollum and Palestinian children!
ACT NOW TO DEFEND PALESTINIAN CHILDREN
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McCollum deserves special thanks and to know that her brave actions are appreciated by many. Click here if you’d like to thank McCollum on her Facebook page.