Today, for the first time since December 19, Ahed Tamimi will savour life beyond the confines of a prison cell and exercise yard as she is released from Israeli custody for slapping and kicking an occupation forces’ soldier in the occupied West Bank. A video of Ahed’s act of defiance went viral, turning the then 16-year-old girl into a symbol of Palestinian resistance, and spreading the cause across the internet through shared social media platforms.
Ahed turned 17 behind bars, and had ample time to reflect on the innate injustices faced by Palestinians in their own homes, in their own lands, living under an illegal occupier who has effectively imposed an apartheid regime on Palestinians, using the mechanisms and authority of its weight of arms and judicial process to falsely imprison and punish those who oppose it. Yes, Ahed’s act was to yell and slap occupation soldiers who illegally entered her home. Any acts of defiance or forms of protests are taken as an affront to the illegal and immoral authority of the regime — and her trial and sentence has shown to all around the world that as long as the occupation remains in place and is supported by a powerful Jewish lobby in New York and Washington, Palestinians will face repression and subjugation. Yes, Ahed has been released from prison, but she, like all Palestinians born over these past seven decades, has yet to taste true freedom. That, alas, will only come, when Palestinians have their homes and lands returned, those living in exile return, and the occupation forces are held to account for their crimes and injustices. And for that to happen, there will need to be many more like Ahed Tamimi.
