A report from Al-Jazeera
says the Arab Foundation for Human Rights in Nazareth is exposing a law
in Israel which by nature separates Palestinian families for “security
and preserving Jewishness of our state”.
(Lana Khateeb and her family, image Al-Jazeera, not mine)
The law was passed by Ariel Sharon’s government in early 2002 for the purpose of ‘protecting the Jewishness of the state’ by forbidding the return of Palestinian refugees to Israel from the ‘back door’ (referring to the Green Line, a demarcation between the State of Israel and territories captured by Israel in the Six Day War, mostly inhabited by Arabs. See map below.)
As an example, the article focuses on telling the story of Lana Khatib, a woman originally from Janeen which is a Palestinian refugee village in Palestinian territory. She married a man named Tisir Khatib, an Arab from Aka, a city inside Israeli territory. Since their marriage, the Israeli authorities extracted her from Aka sending her back across the Green Line to Janeen for the span of a year.
Today, she lives illegally once again in Aka with her husband in family while authorities ‘hunt’ her to expel her once again to her place of birth. She said to Al-Jazeera that she lives in a constant state of fear that she will be discovered and separated from her family in an unending cycle.
“My heartbreak is for my children Adnan (5 yrs.) and and Yasra (4 yrs.) who are always afraid of the possibility that I could be taken away without them.”
One comment I had as I read this article is why would someone choose to do a full interview with Al-Jazeera, pictures and all, if they are illegal? It brings up the bigger question, can a human be illegal? Does she have a right to her family? Does that right trump real or perceived threats to the security of an entire people?
(Lana Khateeb and her family, image Al-Jazeera, not mine)
The law was passed by Ariel Sharon’s government in early 2002 for the purpose of ‘protecting the Jewishness of the state’ by forbidding the return of Palestinian refugees to Israel from the ‘back door’ (referring to the Green Line, a demarcation between the State of Israel and territories captured by Israel in the Six Day War, mostly inhabited by Arabs. See map below.)
As an example, the article focuses on telling the story of Lana Khatib, a woman originally from Janeen which is a Palestinian refugee village in Palestinian territory. She married a man named Tisir Khatib, an Arab from Aka, a city inside Israeli territory. Since their marriage, the Israeli authorities extracted her from Aka sending her back across the Green Line to Janeen for the span of a year.
Today, she lives illegally once again in Aka with her husband in family while authorities ‘hunt’ her to expel her once again to her place of birth. She said to Al-Jazeera that she lives in a constant state of fear that she will be discovered and separated from her family in an unending cycle.
“My heartbreak is for my children Adnan (5 yrs.) and and Yasra (4 yrs.) who are always afraid of the possibility that I could be taken away without them.”
One comment I had as I read this article is why would someone choose to do a full interview with Al-Jazeera, pictures and all, if they are illegal? It brings up the bigger question, can a human be illegal? Does she have a right to her family? Does that right trump real or perceived threats to the security of an entire people?
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