(Mohammed Omer (right) receiving the 2007 Martha Gellhorn Journalism Prize along with journalist Dahr Jamail (left). They are joined in the photo by journalist John Pilger, a member of the Prize’s judges panel. Photo: Paul de Rooij.)
A year ago today Palestinian journalist Mohammed Omer was trying to return home to Gaza after being in London to accept the Martha Gellhorn Journalism Prize. When he was tried to enter Israel/Palestine from the the Allenby Bridge Crossing between Jordan and the West Bank, he was detained, interrogated and tortured by the Shin Bet, the Israeli internal security service.
While there was some reporting of Omer’s torture at the time (most notably this amazing piece by Gideon Levy – read it!) for the most part it was ignored, or misreported. Today, Omer has written an article about his experience and the media coverage surrounding it entitled, “A Journalist Beaten — One Year Later.”
As a side note I should add that I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Mohammed during one of his speaking tours through the US. I was amazed at his calm, his gentleness and his amazing compassion given all that had endured living in Gaza. I knew I would not be able to respond the same way if I were in his position. I also remember reading the Gideon Levy article above around a year ago in the Ha’aretz weekend section as I was sitting on a plane leaving the Ben Gurion Airport. The story of the disgusting, racist and inhumane Israeli treatment of Omer devastated me then as is it still does now. If you want to know why Israel is becoming a pariah state in the eyes of the world, you don’t have to look any further than this story.
Here is one passage from Mohammed Omer’s article, but I encourage you read the entire piece:
Confronted with the medical reports and injuries including bruised ribs Israeli officials told the BBC on July 1, 2008 that, “He lost balance and fell, for reasons unknown to us,” other officers suggest, “Mr. Omer had a nervous breakdown due to the high temperature.”
Despite the attempts at denials, the emergency medical technician who sat in the back of the ambulance with me reported, “We noted fingerprints on his neck and chest,” the type bruising caused by excessive force often used in forensics to identify an attacker.
When Associated Press reporter Karin Laub called me on my cell phone for an interview after my ordeal, I detailed how I was stripped and held at gunpoint. Her reply? “Go on,” she stated. “This is normal about what we hear happening at Ben Gurion Airport . It’s nothing new.”
Torture, strip searches and holding award winning journalists or any other human beings at gun point is normal at Israel ’s largest airport? Ms. Laub’s apathy continued. In her article for the Associated Press on June 29th she wrote that she interviewed “Dr. Husseini who claims there were no signs of physical trauma.”
There’s only one problem with this. This Dr. Husseini never treated me. The Minister of Health in Ramallah confirmed that Husseini never made any such statement to the AP reporter. For reasons known only to her, Ms. Laub appears to have fabricated this comment and purposely ignored the medical reports and the statements by the attending paramedics — counter to journalistic ethics and standards upheld by the Associated Press. Despite this, no independent investigation toke place.
Meanwhile the Jerusalem correspondent for the Los Angles Times, Ashraf Khalil, conducted an investigation into my case and noted in his article on November 3, 2008, that my medical records describe: “Tenderness on the anterior part of the neck and upper back mainly along the right ribs moderate to severe pain,” and “by examination the scrotum due to pain varicocele (varicose veins in the spermatic cord) at left side detected and surgery was decided later.” Fevers and falls do not cause such distinctive marks. Kicks, punches and beatings do. Continuing Khalil explains that, “Paramedic Mahmoud Tararya arrived in a Palestinian Red Crescent Society ambulance and said he found Omer semiconscious with bruises on his neck and chest. Tararya said Israeli security officers were asking Omer to sign “some sort of form written in Hebrew. The paramedic said he intervened, separated Omer from the soldiers and loaded him into the ambulance, where he remained semiconscious for most of the trip to a hospital.”
This is yet another extraordinary horror story illustrating Israel's hubris and cruelty and lawlessness. My warmest wishes go out to Mohammed Omer, who really has seen it all-his house demolished by the IDF, his father imprisoned by the Israelis for 11 years, his brother killed by the IDF on his way home from school and, finally, his own torture at the hands of Israel. Israel seems to be gripped by a collective madness that is becoming increasingly obvious. I'm angry and I have little doubt that the rest of the US population is becoming angry too. The scales are falling from our eyes. Mohammed Omer's story is so powerful.
John Pilger is an excellent Journalist. His archive on Antiwar.com is highly recommend. http://antiwar.com/pilger/?articleid=14015 His commentary on Cast Lead was really good, Holocaust Denied http://antiwar.com/pilger/?articleid=14015
AP is evil. Not Dracula evil, brain-burrowing worm evil.
Tortured? He looks fine to me>
JIm Haygood – He was tortured AFTER this photo was taken. The photo was taken in London before he returned to the torture land of Israel, a country that has for years been torturing and murdering Palestinians. If you read the article you would not have made that stupid comment.
May I point out that the LA Times journalist, Karen Laub, who casually dismissed Mohammed's description of his arrival at the Tel Aviv airport and then put words into the mouth of the Ramallah physician that he hadn't said, , and who has done considerable reporting or rather misreporting from the Middle East is an MOT (Member of the Tribe) as it is referred to in tribal circles, and she is just doing her job (not for the Times or its readers) as a loyal sayanim. Israel stands out as the only country in the world to which the American media routinely sends reporters who quite likely have either an emotional or family connection with that country and therefore an obvious conflict of interest.
I agree, and I wish it were true that most Americans were lifting the scales from their eyes, however what they are doing today is spending endless hours watching news about Michael Jackson. They view that as looking at the glass as half-full, and anyone faintly criticizing their priority is viewed as looking at the glass way too darkly & being "a know it all." This was the result of my personal poll, taken last night and today. Cheers.
That's not Jim Haygood; it's our old hasbara Pal Chris Berel, who nowadays usually goes by other pen names–you can always recognize him by his content. The real Jim Haygood has not posted here for quite a while–he got tired of having to say he did not post so many comments attributed to him.
It's also the only country in the world who's elected government continually validates Israel's every whim by appointing Zionists to key slots in the Executive, and making every key slot in Congress where the conflict of interest is very obvious. That's how the narrow tail wags the big sad dopey dog.
That big sad dopey dog has a long history of rottweiler viciousness in attacking and overthrowing all types of governments – including democracies – when they don't pay homage to the US. "He may be a bastard, but he is our bastard." sums up the attitude of this big sad dopey dog. Israel may wag the dog, but the dog is more than willing.
You're right. Anyway, I doubt the thumbprints of an Evil JOOOOOO would be visible in a photo . . .
The attack on Omar did achieve two goals: It send a message to others that nothing can protect you from Israeli brutality if they choose to attack, and physically disabled Omar thus slowing him down and reducing his ability to work.
It's a pity the entire population of Israel can't be beaten to a pulp, but I suppose it would take too long.
I remain convinced that most Israelis do not want to believe the level of injustice that is perpetrated on Palestinians on behalf of security. But this is small nation whose citizens have many direct and indirect connections with the security apparatus. They do know something is wrong. The ones perpetrating or authorizing the civil liberty infractions and humiliation simply wink and downplay the level criminality perpetrated on behalf of "security" Matter of fact, Israelis seem to wink an awful lot which makes me wonder as to what is going on in this society in general. Israelis conveniently shuffle aside their knowledge of the day to day infliction on Palestinians. Like most people in the world, they want to continue with their shopping, raising families without any kind of interference. Whatever happens in the Palestinian "ghetto" is largely out of sight and mind.