Amnesty "specialist" writes a love letter to a Hamas supporter

ABC Australia reports about Hamas supporting hunger striker Muhammed al-Qiq:

The Israel army told the ABC that Mr al-Qeeq was detained because he is accused of "involvement and activism" with the Palestinian militant organisation Hamas and that he poses a "danger to local security".

Mr al-Qeeq was arrested and jailed three times in his 20s and his wife admitted he was involved with Hamas as a university student, but she said he was not active now.

"I tell you no Mohammad is not a member of Hamas," she said.

"He is a Palestinian journalist. Since he got out of jail in 2009 until he got arrested in 2015 he didn't organise any activities."

The ABC has seen video that Israel said proves Mr Al Qeeq incited others to violence.

Speaking at a West Bank University in November he praised young Palestinian attackers who had recently killed Israelis and spoke glowingly of a famous Hamas commander and bomb maker Yahya Ayyash.

Amnesty International is among the international bodies that have voiced concern for Mr al-Qeeq.

"Amnesty International has called on the Israeli authorities to release Mr al-Qeeq unless they are going to charge him with an internationally recognised criminal offence and trial him according to international fair trial standards," said Jacob Burns, Amnesty International research and campaign assistant.

Mr al-Qeeq has also alleged he was tortured by the Israeli security services.

"He says he was tied in a stress position known as the banana to a chair for up to 15 hours a day," Mr Burns said.

"And that his Israel interrogators threatened him with sexual violence and told him he would not see his family again for a long time if he did not confess to the allegations against him."

Israeli security officials have told the ABC the allegations about torture are "totally baseless".

Now, Edith Garwood, who is the "country specialist" for Israel and the territories for Amnesty USA, has written - on Amnesty's official blog - what can only be described as a love letter to the terrorist supporter.

Muhammed -What were you thinking about when you accepted the reality of your own death?

What thoughts and images went through your mind when you realized you were willing to risk permanent physical damage or even death to gain your freedom?

Were you thinking about the softness of your babies’ cheeks? How they smelled so fresh and their skin felt so soft after bath time?

Did you think of all the moments with your children, your babies, that you would miss?

Your children’s first day of school? Sending them off with their little backpacks or maybe how they would proudly walk up the aisle to receive their high school diplomas?

Maybe you imagined yourself dancing with your daughter at her wedding as your body started to shut down and you began to vomit blood.

Did you picture your wife’s face just as it was when you asked her to marry you as you were unable to resist the intravenous drip being inserted in your arm against your wishes?

Or maybe, when she told you she was pregnant, as your internal organs began to shut down?

Perhaps you were thinking of how they tortured you, using stress positions and threats of sexual violence?

Were you scared when you went on hunger strike? Hopeful?

The italicized sections of the article reproduced here are indented, making them appear to be a quote from someone else, the conclusion of the article - not set off as a block quote - shows that Garwood herself is indeed the author of this love note:

So, I wonder, knowing all this information, understanding his options – or non-options – what was Muhammed thinking when he realized that he may very well be leaving his wife and two, young children, his mother, his friends and profession at the hands of death as a last, desperate act to fight the unjust situation and on the small chance he would win his release?

What was he thinking when he chose – freedom?

Garwood is a former ISM volunteer and had written plenty of absurd, one-sided anti-Israel polemics before Amnesty decided that she is the perfect fit for that organization.

Now she writes the same things with the imprimatur of a major human rights organization.

And Amnesty has no problem with officially believing and publishing, without any disclaimer, the claims of a terror supporter about being tortured.

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