We, the undersigned individuals and organizations, call on you to strongly oppose David Friedman’s nomination as US Ambassador to Israel.
- Dear United Nations Secretary General António Guterres and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein,
Palestinian activist Issa Amro, who has been recognized as a Human Rights Defender by the European Union and the United Nations, is undergoing Israeli military trial1 on 18 charges dating all the way back to 2010.
Mr. Amro’s case is an example of widespread targeting of human rights activists using old and exaggerated charges in a military court system whose conviction rate for Palestinians is over 99%2.
As civil and human rights advocates and faith groups, we ask that you call on the Israeli government to drop the politically-motivated charges against Issa Amro and allow him to continue his important work of protecting human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
1 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/27/opinion/whos-afraid-of-nonviolence.html
2 https://972mag.com/conviction-rate-for-palestinians-in-israels-military-courts-99-74-percent/28579/
Sponsors
- Jewish Voice for Peace
- Center for Jewish Nonviolence
- CODEPINK Women for Peace
- Interfaith Peace Builders
- National Lawyers Guild – International Committee
- US Campaign for Palestinian Rights
- US Palestinian Community Network
- Youth Against Settlements
Endorsers
- Australian Jewish Democratic Society
- Friends of Sabeel – North America
- Human Rights Defenders Fund
- Independent Jewish Voices Canada
- Jews of Color/Sephardi/Mizrahi Caucus
- Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
- Scales for Justice (S4J)
- Sedq: A Global Jewish Network for Justice
- Shomeret Shalom Rabbinic School & Global Congregation
- South African Jewish Voices for a Just Peace JVJP
- UJFP French Jewish Union for Peace
Free Issa Coalition is a group of concerned human rights advocates calling on the Israeli government to drop the politically-motivated charges against Issa Amro.