Basil Farraj writes an heartrending diary of what it is like for a Palestinian family to visit a loved one in Israeli prisons: “Smiling behind the bulletproof glass are our loved ones. Their faces are full of happiness and joy. Silently, your loved one taps the bulletproof glass and you do so in return. Everyone seems to be doing the same thing. The glass (and the occupation) stands in the way of any possible physical touch between the prisoner and the visitor.”
Basil AbdulRazeq Farraj was nearly two years old when his father was arrested by Israeli authorities in 1994. Since he has celebrated many birthdays separated from him as his father remains in Israeli detention. Farraj writes on his father’s birthday this year: “I am celebrating my father’s love that transcends the prison walls he became so acquainted to. I am celebrating his unwavering commitment to justice and equality. I am celebrating the few words he sent out, through a lawyer, while on hunger strike seven months ago: “my determination reaches the furthest point in the sky.” I am celebrating the moments we had and those we will have.”
I have previously written about my father, Abdul-Razeq Farraj, and the use of administrative detention…