Middle East Eye / August 1, 2023
The Forum of Palestinian Journalists (FPJ) called on Monday for the Palestinian Authority to release journalist Sami al-Sa’e from prison in the occupied West Bank. The FPJ condemned the detention of the journalist by the PA security services, describing it as “completely illegal”.
According to the forum, the detention of Al-Sa’e “is an extension of the PA’s policy of oppressing journalists and violating their rights guaranteed by the Palestinian and international law.” It pointed out that he was also detained by the PA in 2017 and 2020, and noted that he had been detained by Israel before he was detained by the PA.
“We call on PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh to fulfil his repeated pledges about protecting freedoms,” said the FPJ.
The Palestinian Journalists’ Bloc also called for the PA security agencies to release Al-Sa’e “immediately” along with all of the other political prisoners held in PA prisons. The bloc added that rights groups should assume their responsibilities towards Al-Sa’e and work for his release.
At the same time, it called on the secretaries-general of the Palestinian factions, who met in Cairo at the weekend to find a solution for the national division, to discuss the issue of political detention and the suppression of civil freedoms by the PA in the occupied West Bank.
