150 Trees Named After the Longest-Serving Palestinian Detainees Planted in Zabouba to Mark the World Red Cross Red Crescent Day

Zabouba, 8 May 2013 – PRCS organized a festival in Zabouba, a village located to the North of Jenin and surrounded by the Wall of Separation, to mark the World Red Cross Red Crescent Day celebrated annually on the 8th of May.The festival which marked the 150th anniversary of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Movement was held with the key message “Maintaining Human Dignity”, under the banner “My Freedom, My Dignity”. Participants included local and national personalities as well as PRCS staff and volunteers from the Northern West Bank.

Speaking on behalf of PRCS, Dr. Abdallah Sabri, PRCS Vice President and director of PRCS/Jerusalem branch, said: “Alongside its sister organizations throughout the world, PRCS is celebrating this important Movement which provides assistance and humanitarian aid to the victims of wars. The freedom and dignity of Palestinians are supported by International Humanitarian Law and the four Geneva Conventions of 1949. PRCS shall focus on these two important goals in this year’s celebrations, shedding light on Palestinian detainees and their suffering in Israeli jails as part of activities to safeguard human dignity promoted by the International Movement. Zabouba was chosen to host our celebrations due to the oppression it is under and the fact that it is almost totally surrounded by the Wall of Separation”.

Giorgio Ferrero, Representative of the International Federation of Red CrossRed Crescent Societies (IFRC) in the Palestinian Territory,said that this was an occasion to remember the martyrs of humanity as well as Palestinian and Syrian volunteers making tremendous humanitarian efforts in Syria. He recalled the dire conditions witnessed by Palestinians who are undergoing a second displacement in Syria, as well as difficult conditions witnessed by Palestinian refugees who left Syria to Lebanon and Egypt. He lauded PRCS efforts to allay their suffering.

Mr. Paul Keen, ICRC Cooperation Coordinator, underlined the need to bring about positive change during wars and conflicts with the help of the International Movement whose main principle is maintaining human dignity. “The real challenge is mobilizing people in order to work for them and with them to ensure human dignity”, he said.
Mohamad Abeidiyeh, Chairman of Zabouba Village Council, welcomed his guests and listed the key Israeli measures taken against Zabouba, a village surrounded by the Wall of Separation and very close to Salem Detention Center. He lauded the efforts of PRCS and so did the representative of Jenin Governorate who addressed a message to ICRC calling upon it to help free all Palestinian detainees.

Palestinian popular dance (dabkeh) shows, poetry recitals, plays and heritage interludes focusing on human dignity and Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons were presented by PRCS volunteers from Zabouba, Sanour, Jaba’, Al Sila Al Harithiya and Al Yamoun. At the end of the ceremony, 150 olive trees named after the 150 longest serving Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons were planted just a few meters away from Salem Detention Center. Liberated detainee Bilal Thiyab and several PRCS volunteers and Palestinians took part in the planting of these trees.