RAMALLAH, The Palestinian Prisoner Society (PPS) today condemned an Israeli decision to deport Palestinian French human rights defender and resident of occupied East Jerusalem, Salah Hammouri, 37, after revoking his Jerusalem residency rights.
PPS director Qaddoura Faris described in a statement the sudden decision to deport Hammouri to France and to revoke his Jerusalem residency as a crime.
“The occupation regime and its various organs were not satisfied with the crimes committed against Hammouri over many years, but added to them an additional crime to uproot Hammouri from his homeland, his family, and his society, in an attempt to undermine his human rights and national role,” said Faris.
Hammouri, who is currently held in administrative detention since the beginning of March, has spent nine years in Israeli occupation prisons as a result of over six arrests with the longest stretch he spent in Israeli detention being seven continuous years between 2005 and 2011 after he was forced to choose between being deported to France for 15 years or imprisoned for seven.
In October 2021, Israel issued a decision to revoke his Jerusalem residency for charges of not showing loyalty to the State of Israel, which was based on ‘secret evidence.’ His French wife and children currently reside in France because the occupation authorities have prevented them from returning to live in Jerusalem, thus depriving the family of living together in the father’s homeland.
Hammouri is expected to be deported on December 4.
Source: Palestine News & Info Agency