Palestinians Hope For More Foreign Intervention To Release Political Prisoners From Israeli Custody

By Cecilia Jeyanthi Victor KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 (Bernama) -- Palestinians residing in Malaysia hope there will be more intervention by international communities to prevent Israeli forces from illegally holding political prisoners in custody. Palestine Ambassador to Malaysia, Dr Anwar Al-Agha said some Palestinians in Malaysia were constantly worried over the safety of family members held illegally in Israeli prison camps. “Thus, we are calling the international communities to intervene and stop the Israeli occupation in Palestine and release prisoners who have been illegally detained. “Imagine, we have 7,000 detainees suffering for more than 20 to 30 years without trial, that is a violation of international laws. They are isolated from their families, denied medical check-ups and are inhumanely treated by their Israeli captors,” he told Bernama in a recent interview at the Embassy of the State of Palestine. Anwar said most prisoners who had been released are haunted by nightmares of their imprisonment and needed rehabilitation. Anwar who is also ambassador to Brunei, Thailand, Philippines and the Maldives expressed the gratitude of the Palestinians towards Malaysia which had proposed recommendations to solve the Palestinian plight during last year’s United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution on the Israel-Palestinian conflict. “The Palestinians were very happy with the Malaysian support during the UNSC resolution, in every Palestinian home, the Malaysian flag was flown as a sign of appreciation by the Palestinian people towards Malaysia,” he said. Meanwhile, Anwar also said political figures such as Marwan Barghouti and many other Palestine parliamentarians were being held in Israeli prisons, which was a clear violation of the law as members of the legislative council had political immunity. On this, Anwar added: “Most detained are political prisoners led by Barghouti, illegally detained while the Israeli forces act above the law and this is the real problem.” Asked how the Palestinian people remained resilient despite going through years of conflict and war, he said the only thing that kept them hopeful were their right to establish the state of Palestine as their own land. He said the Palestinians were a united people who strongly believed in justice, adding that they were happy to note more countries recognising the Palestine state such as Latin America and Europe. “Thus, we are more optimistic that more nations will support the Palestinian cause as they believe in our right to establish a democracy, gain freedom, justice and peace,” added Anwar. -- BERNAMA