Israeli Beduins call on Hamas to release mentally disabled prisoner

On Monday, a letter written by "the community of Israeli Beduins" and addressed to the Kassam Brigades was spread on Palestinian social media networks.

By MAAYAN GROISMAN
Updated: APRIL 4, 2016 16:50
Al Aksa TV footage of Hamas military wing showing images of four Israeli "POWs" (photo credit: ARAB MEDIA)
Al Aksa TV footage of Hamas military wing showing images of four Israeli "POWs"
(photo credit: ARAB MEDIA)
The community of Israeli Beduins has demanded that Hamas release a mentally disabled prisoner it has been holding for a year together with the Ethiopian-Israeli prisoner, Avera Mengistu.
The Beduin prisoner, whose name remains under gag order in Israel, is a resident of the Negev town of Hura. He crossed the border to Gaza in April 2015, when he was captured by Hamas' military wing, al-Kassam Brigades. In February 2010, he previously crossed the border to Gaza, but was arrested by local police who noticed that he was mentally disabled and returned him to his hometown.
On Monday, a letter written by "the community of Israeli Beduins" and addressed to the Kassam Brigades was spread on Palestinian social media networks.
The letter's authors state that one of the Israeli prisoners whose image was recently presented by Hamas along with three other Israeli hostages is a mentally disabled person who has previously infiltrated into the Gaza Strip.
"By holding a mentally disabled Muslim person, the Kassam Brigades are acting immorally. They infringe on this man's liberty and hurt his family," the letter read.
"Ethiopians Falash Mura, who are Jews, are discriminated by the Israeli establishment. Hence, those who think that this establishment will have any interest in an Arab guy are wrong," the Beduins stated.
Reacting to the letter, Muhannad Alawi, a Hamas supporter, wrote on Twitter: "If the man would have been a Palestinian who does not serve the occupation in any form, we would have told the Kassam Brigades to release him. But he has Israeli citizenship."
"I do not believe that the Kassam Brigades hold an Arab for no reason. Perhaps he is a soldier and Israel is attempting to deceive the resistance by painting him as a crazy Arab," Alawi added.