Muhannad Salahat, a 29 year old human rights defender from Palestine, was disappeared by the Palestinian Authority Intelligence services in Nablus last Saturday, 1 May 2010. Since 2007, Muhannad has been working with the Palestinian Human Rights Foundation (Monitor) exposing human rights violations and the deteriorating humanitarian and security situation in the West Bank and Jordan. He has been repeatedly harassed, slandered and detained by the Palestinian Authorities' security forces without ever been charged or tried for any crimes. Alkarama has informed the United Nations human rights mechanisms of Muhannad's situation and called for them to take immediate action.
In an article published in 2008 which listed all the deaths in Palestinian Prisons due to torture since 1998 and named those responsible, Muhannad stated "Are these [victims] not the sons of our Palestinian people regardless of their political persuasion, whether Hamas or Jihad, or PFLP?" [1] These reports of serious human rights violations perpetrated by the Palestinian security forces have lead to his harassment, detention and current disappearance.
Muhannad Salahat was arrested at 10pm on 28 March 2010 as he crossed the Allenby bridge from Jordan to Palestine. He was mistreated by the PA's Intelligence Services who dragged him to an armored vehicle and put a hood over his head. He was then interrogated until 5am the next morning about the reports and articles he had written criticizing the corruption and incompetence of members of the PA as well as the torture and illegal executions carried out by the PA's various security forces.
Detained for 14 days without any charges or trial, he was released on 11 April only to be again arrested on 19 April 2010 by the PA's Intelligence Services whilst trying to cross the Palestinian Jordanian border at the Karama crossing. He was detained for 6 hours without been told the reason, and then released. He went to the Jordanian border; the Jordanian authorities also prevented him from entering due to a request from the Palestinian Authority to the Jordanian authorities preventing him from traveling and returning him to the Palestinian territories.
Muhannad was also subjected to a slander campaign by the Palestinian Authorities who spread rumours and stories that he was arrested for criminal not political reasons. They announced he was accused of having used cheques which bounced, or that he owed his ex-wife money, even that Interpol had emitted a warrant for him.
On 1 May 2010, Muhannad was summoned to the headquarters of the Palestinian Intelligence in Nablus and has since been detained incommunicado.
[1] تاريخ القتل الأسود في سجون السلطة (The black history...Death under torture in the Palestinian Authority prisons... experiences from the past 14 years), by Muhannad Salahat, published on 23 February 2008, available at: http://www.paltimes.net/arabic/read.php?news_id=76261 (accessed on 4 May 2010).
For more information or an interview, please contact media@alkarama.org (Dir: +41 22 734 1008).