User:Tiamut/Khader

Life
Adnan's political activism dates back to his days as a student. In 1996, while studying for his undergraduate degree in mathematics at Birzeit University, he became a political advocate on behalf of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). A small Palestinian militant organization, the group has carried out suicide bombings and paramilitary operations against civilian and military targets and is considered a terrorist group by Israel, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia

First arrested and detained by Israel in 1999, he has been detained eight additional times since—six times by Israel (including his current detention), and twice by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). The Palestinian prisoners' support group Addameer said Adnan has spent a total of six years in prison since 1999.

Adnan spent four months in Israeli administrative detention in 1999. He was arrested by the PNA eight months after being released for leading a student demonstration against Lionel Jospin in 2000. At the demonstration, students threw eggs or stones at the former French Prime Minister during his visit to Birzeit to denounce his characterization of Hezbollah's military actions against the Israeli occupation as “terrorism.” His first hunger strike, 10 days long, was undertaken during his detention by the PNA. He spent a year in administrative detention following his December 2002 arrest by Israel. Rearrested six months after his release, he was placed in solitary confinement and went on hunger strike for 28 days until the Israel Prisons Service placed him with the general prison population.

He married his wife Randa Adnan in 2005; by this time he had been detained five times for his political affiliation with Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). His wife said before they married he told her that, "his life was not normal, that he might be around for 15 days and then be gone again for a long time. But I always dreamt of marrying someone strong, someone who struggles in defence of his country."

Adnan has been convicted in the past by Israel for being a spokesperson for the PIJ, and media reports indicate he served as a PIJ spokesman. Gulf News said he has served as a spokesman for the group since 2000, while The Guardian and Agence France Press said he was a "one-time spokesman" for the PIJ in the past. Reports from Xinhua and Reuters in 2005 said he is considered a "prominent [Islamic] Jihad leader" and a "senior Islamic Jihad official." In June 2005, after PIJ members were killed in a shootout with Israeli troops, Adnan "called on all Palestinian militant groups to resume fighting with Israel" and accused the governing entity the PNA of collaborating with Israel.

In August 2005, Adnan was arrested and imprisoned by Israel for 15 months. According to Addameer, he held a 12-day hunger strike to protest his isolation in Kfar Yona in 2005. A YouTube video of a rally in 2007 shows him praising and encouraging suicide bombings: "Who among you will carry the next explosive belt? Who among you will fire the next bullets? Who among you will have his body parts blown all over?" He was held by Israel for another six months in administrative detention beginning in March 2008. Arrested by the PNA in 2010 for his political activity, Gideon Levy said he undertook his first hunger strike during this 12-day detention.

2011 detention and hunger strike
At the time of his most recent arrest, Adnan was no longer an active spokesman for the PIJ. He was working as a baker while studying for a master's degree in economics at the Bir Zeit University. He owns the bakery in nearby Qabatya and a produce store in his hometown of Arraba, near Jenin in the West Bank. A father to two daughters, Maali and Bissan, Randa was pregnant with their third child, when he was arrested by the Israeli Army on 17 December 2011 from their home in Arraba in the middle of the night. The next day he began a hunger strike that ended 66 days later on 21 February 2012.

In a letter he gave to his lawyers for public release, Adnan explained why he was on hunger strike:

"The Israeli occupation has gone to extremes against our people, especially prisoners. I have been humiliated, beaten, and harassed by interrogators for no reason, and thus I swore to God I would fight the policy of administrative detention to which I and hundreds of my fellow prisoners fell prey ... The only thing I can do is offer my soul to God, as I believe righteousness and justice will eventually triumph over tyranny and oppression. I hereby assert that I am confronting the occupiers not for my own sake as an individual, but for the sake of thousands of prisoners who are being deprived of their simplest human rights while the world and international community look on. It is time the international community and the UN support prisoners and force the State of Israel to respect international human rights and stop treating prisoners as if they were not humans."

Adnan was interrogated for 18 days following his arrest; he told his lawyers that during this time Israeli soldiers made sexual innuendos about his wife, mocked Islam his religion, beat him, tied him to a chair in painful positions, ripped hair from his beard and wiped dirt on his face. Israeli authorities did not comment on these allegations. According to his wife and lawyers, Adnan's mistreatment continued and included lengthy periods of solitary confinement, multiple strip searches, and continuous abusive interrogation.

He has officially been under administrative detention since 10 January 2012, a term that was set to last until 8 May at which point his detention could be renewed if the Israeli authorities deem it necessary. As of 31 December 2011, there were 307 Palestinians in administrative detention, including 21 members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, the parliament of the Palestinian Authority. Under the administrative detention procedure, the Israeli military can hold detainees for an indefinite period without charge or evidence if it deems them to be security threats. The decision to detain an individual is based on evidence presented to military judges, but not the defendant or his lawyers, and is subject to judicial review.

Adnan has not been formally charged with any crime; Israel states he was arrested "for activities that threaten regional security." BBC, CNN and Al Jazeera reported that Adnan is believed to be a leader of the PIJ in the West Bank. Bikya Masr reported he is a "senior leader of the Islamic Jihad organization" and according to Al-Ahram, He is a "leading figure in Islamic Jihad."

It is not known if Adnan was directly involved in attacks on Israelis; he has never been charged as such by Israel. His wife Randa denied Adnan had any leadership role in the PIJ, or any role in militant activities, and said he was a member of a Palestinian reconciliation committee. She told YNET in 2011 that, "It’s true that he was the Islamic Jihad's spokesman during the intifada, but over the past four years he had nothing to do with it ... He hadn't talked to anyone from the Islamic Jihad. He left that activity altogether."

He was transferred to a hospital on December 30 but refused treatment from Israeli doctors. After meeting Adnan in the hospital, the organization Physicians for Human Rights - Israel, expressed "grave concern" and about his situation, which its doctors described as "critical." About 50 days into his hunger strike his wife Randa was permitted to visit him and stated he appeared emaciated and dirty and was shackled to his hospital bed.

On 9 February, in response to criticism from human rights groups, the Israeli Prison Authority stated Adnan's case was being "strictly according to the law ... with special attention being given to his humanitarian situation." The prison service also stated that Adnan agreed to take potassium pills and does not want to die.

Randa Adnan appealed to Egyptian authorities to help release her husband stating "Hope is now in Egypt to release Adnan. There's talk about Egyptian efforts to do so and I hope it's true. Egypt had an active role in the last prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel – it is our older sister and we hope it intervenes." The Palestinian Ministry of Prisoners' Affairs confirmed that Egypt was intervening with Israel to release Adnan. She has also said that Adnan will not backtrack on his decision, and that, "When I married him I knew I should expect anything. I am proud of him whether he is under the ground or above it."

Almost two months into his hunger strike, it was reported that Adnan agreed to having electrolytes, vitamins, glucose, and salts added to the water he is drinking. His doctors noted that, "A fast in excess of 70 days does not permit survival. Infusion of liquids, adjustment of salts, and the addition of glucose and vitamin cannot prevent certain death due to such a protracted hunger strike."

An Israeli military court judge rejected his first appeal against detention in a session convened at a hospital in Safed where he was being held on 13 February 2012. .

On 16 February, Adnan's lawyers petitioned the Supreme Court of Israel to release him, citing that Adnan is in "immediate danger of death." Lawyer Mahmoud Kassandra stated "This is the last chance. The medical report says he could die at any minute. We hope this will succeed but I am not optimistic." Following a visit to Adnan by Rebecca Ziv from Physicians for Human Rights - Israel, she said of his situation: "He has lost 30kg and weighs 60kg. He suffers from stomach aches, vomiting, sometimes with blood, and headaches … His general condition is pale and very weak, his tongue is smooth, he has slight bleeding from the gums, dry skin, loss of hair, and significant muscular atrophy. His pulse is weak, blood pressure 100/75. He is permanently connected to a heart monitor."