Arab Organisation for Human Rights in the UK (AOHR UK) stressed that the Palestinian Authority (PA) security services continue having repressive campaigns against political activists and violate their basic rights, especially the right to freedom of expression and peaceful gathering.
The PA security services arrested activist Mozid Saqf Al-Hait on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, in Nablus, after 48 days of continuous pursuit, incitement and death threats against him, all of which aimed to silence him and prevent him from continuing his work.
AOHR UK recieved information from close sources to Mozid weeks before his arrest, and provided it with shocking details about the death threats and torture he received from PA affiliates.
The threats he received came after his participation in demonstrations condemning the assassination of activist Nizar Banat and his expression of his opposing stance to the PA. He received public threats of becoming subject to sexual assaulted and dragging on the floor by security officers and some members of the Fatah movement, including the brother of the governor of Nablus. He also received warnings from the security services stating that revealing his political views would result in him facing severe punishment, which could amount to death.
Moreover, Palestinian human rights organisations asked Mozid to remain silent about the threats he received, which reveals the serious failure to protect the rights of political activists or their safety.
Mozid’s relatives said that the arrest took place without a legal warrant being presented, as security officers in civilian and military uniforms stormed their home and terrorised the family, including their children, who are 9 and 13 years old. The security forces confiscated all electronic devices in the house, and used violence to threaten the family, in a similar practice of the Israeli occupation when storming Palestinian homes.
It is worth noting that this is the fifth arbitrary arrest of activist Mozid by the PA security services, which targeted him after he publicly condemned the killing of Palestinian activist Nizar Banat, who was killed under torture by the Palestinian security services in June 2021.
AOHR UK warned against the activist being subjected to any harm or the implementation of the threats that Mozid documented himself before his arrest. AOHR UK held the Palestinian Authority fully responsible for his safety and called for an independent investigation into the violations to which he was subjected.
The arbitrary arrests and abuse of activists constitute a serious violation and require urgent international intervention, as the the PA receives annual funding from Western countries, and this raises questions on the funds being used to increase internal repression.
AOHR UK demanded the immediate and unconditional release of activist Mozid Saqf Al-Hait and appealed to all human rights organisations and members of the international community to pressure the PA to stop its repressive campaigns and respect the rights of the Palestinians.
