• Urgent Action

Urgent Action Update: Stateless Palestinian Released on Bail (Israel/OPT: UA 41.19)

November 5, 2019

On 24 October 2019, Palestinian photojournalist Mustafa al-Kharouf was released after spending nine months in an Israeli prison. He still does not have legal status and is at risk of being separated from his family again. A new preliminary request to give him legal status has been submitted. Israeli authorities must grant him permanent residency status in East Jerusalem.

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Aryeh Makhlouf Deri Minister of Interior Affairs 2 Kaplan Street PO Box 6158 Kiryat Ben-Gurion Jerusalem, 91061, Israel Fax: + 972 2 670 1628 Email: [email protected]
Ambassador Ron Dermer Embassy of Israel 3514 International Drive NW, Washington DC 20008 Phone: 202 364 5500 Email: [email protected] Twitter: @IsraelinUSA @AmbDermer Facebook: @IsraelinUSA@ambdermer Instagram: @israelinusa Salutation: Dear Ambassador

Dear Minister Aryeh Deri, On 24 October 2019, Mustafa al-Kharouf was released from arbitrary detention in Givon prison and was finally reunited with his family. Although he is released, he is still at risk of being detained again and deported as he has not been granted legal residency status. Mustafa al-Kharouf had to deposit a 12,000 NIS (approximately 4,000 USD) bail and is required to be home between 10:00 pm and 5:00 am. HaMoked Center for the Defense of the Individual via Attorney Adi Lustigman, Mustafa al-Kharouf’s lawyer, have submitted a preliminary request to grant Mustafa al-Kharouf permanent residency under the family reunification procedure. Mustafa al-Kharouf only knows Jerusalem as his home and for years has been attempting to have his status legalized. On 22 January 2019, Palestinian Jerusalemite Mustafa al-Kharouf was arrested after the Israeli Ministry of Interior Affairs denied his request for family unification and ordered his immediate deportation to Jordan. He was arbitrarily detained in Givon prison, in Ramle, for nine months. I urge you to allow Mustafa al-Kharouf to remain safely in his home by granting him permanent residency status in East Jerusalem in line with Israel’s obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention. Yours sincerely, ADDITIONAL RESOURCES