Palestinians release human rights activist arrested for online criticism
Issa Amro let go after he was detained over a Facebook post criticising the arresting of a local journalist
The Palestinian Authority released from prison a Palestinian human rights activist who had been arrested for criticising the government on Facebook.
Issa Amro, 35, was arrested a week ago after he took to Facebook to criticise the arrest of a local journalist who had called for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s resignation. He reportedly was released on £1,062 ($1,400) bail.
He had gone on a hunger strike in Palestinian prison to protest his arrest, and said upon his release that he was verbally and physically abused while in custody, the Associated Press reported.
Amro, who advocates non-violent resistance against Israel’s actions in the West Bank and co-founded the group Youth Against Settlements, was indicted last year by an Israeli military court on a number of charges, including entering closed military zones and obstructing soldiers, according to Haaretz. His trial in that case is to resume in October.
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