10 women from Gaza held in poor condition by Israel, resistance icon Ahed Tamimi says

RAMALLAH, Palestine

One of Palestinian resistance symbols, Ahed Tamimi, said Thursday that at least 10 jailed women from the Gaza Strip are being held in poor condition by Israel.

Tamimi’s remarks were made following her release as part of a sixth batch of a hostage swap deal between Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, and Israel.

The 23-year-old activist told Anadolu that “the joy (of freedom) is greatly diminished due to the massacres that were committed in the Gaza Strip.”

“We left behind about 30 jailed women, including 10 from the Gaza Strip, who were arrested in the recent Israeli ground operation (which began Oct. 27) and their situation is very bad,” she said.

"The circumstance in the prison is very difficult, with daily abuse against female prisoners. They are left without water or clothes, sleeping on the floor, and being beaten."

"The Israeli authorities threatened me with (targeting) my father if I spoke about anything that happens in prison. Despite everything, we are stronger than the occupation. We will continue (resisting) until freedom," she added.

Israeli forces detained Tamimi’s father in October from his home in Nabi Saleh, west of Ramallah city, in the occupied West Bank. He remains in prison.

On Nov. 6, the Israeli army detained the younger Tamimi after searching her house and confiscating the family’s cellular phones.

In 2017, she was arrested by Israeli forces after a video went viral showing the then-16-year-old pushing and hitting Israeli soldiers who tried to enter her house.

Tamimi was slapped with an eight-month jail term for “attacking” an Israeli soldier.

She has since become an international symbol of resistance against Israel’s occupation in the West Bank.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat