So it has come to this. If proof were needed of how harshly the Israeli occupation regime’s military “justice” system can treat young Palestinians, then it came in the form of the eight-month sentence handed over to Ahed Tamimi, the Palestinian teen icon who became famous for confronting her tormentors fearlessly. Tamimi, 17, accepted a plea bargain that will end her trial and should bring about her release in July. It includes a fine of about $1,400 (Dh5,149) and a three-year suspended sentence.
The details of the case are now well-known. On December 15, 2017, there were clashes in the occupied West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli occupation forces. Unarmed Ahed is seen confronting heavily armed soldiers, trying to slap them. But there is a background to this. Just hours earlier, her 14-year-old cousin was shot in the face by the occupation regime’s soldiers with steel-coated rubber bullets, which left him severely disfigured. One can only imagine her state of mind at that time.
The Israeli occupation regime uses two different legal systems to govern the West Bank. One is reserved for the extremist Jewish colonists, who believe they have a God-given right to steal other people’s land. They are subject to Israeli civilian law. The other system is reserved for Palestinians, who are governed by military law. As a result, thousands of Palestinian children have been arrested and brutalised over the past two to three generations, mostly for just throwing stones to register their opposition to the occupation.
Such is the scale of the injustice of the Israeli occupation that a regime soldier who fatally shot a wounded Palestinian lying almost lifeless on the ground gets to spend just a few more weeks in prison for the crime of murder than Tamimi.
Those of us who are fortunate enough to be living in free countries cannot really fathom the Palestinian predicament. Generation after generation has grown up with unfulfilled dreams and scuppered ambitions. The years of humiliation endured at the hands of cruel soldiers and fanatical colonists takes it toll. When your entire life has been lived under the yoke of the oppressor, who controls every aspect of your life, it is easy to be despondent. And people lash out when they know there is nothing more to lose.
The fact remains that Israel will only find peace when the Palestinians find peace. For that, the two-state solution has been and remains the only viable option.
