Samer Issawi's house raided and family arrested ahead of his release

Ahram Online , Sunday 22 Dec 2013

The iconic Palestinian political prisoner was due to be released to his home in Jerusalem a day after Israeli security forces raided it

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Israeli forces raid Issawi house, arrest father and brother (Photo: Shirin Issawi)
Israeli forces raided the Jerusalem home of Palestinian political prisoner and resistance icon Samer Issawi on Sunday, a day before his release from an Israeli prison.
 
His father, Tariq, and his brother, Midhat, were also arrested at the home, according to a Facebook post by Samer’s sister Shirin.
 
Midhat, who was held in an Israeli prison since 15 May 2012, was only released on 10 December, his sister said. According to Addameer, an advocacy group for Palestinian political prisoners, Midhat had previously served 19 years in detention. 
 
Al-Haq, a Palestinian non-governmental organisation for human rights, reported that Issawi's other brother, Shadi, was arrested on 16 February in a similar house raid. Al-Haq also said that Shirin was arrested in December 2012 and put on a 10-day house arrest, and banned from attending Samer’s hearings for six months.
 
Samer ended his 277-day long hunger strike on 23, April 2013 after accepting a deal brokered by Israeli and Palestinian officials to serve eight months on charges of violating bail conditions for an earlier release. He was initially released in 2011 and re-arrested on 7 July 2012.
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