The Democratic Socialists of America party issued a statement January 5th, demanding the release of Ahed Tamimi.

The 16-year old Palestinian girl who was arrested and imprisoned by the Israelis for slapping an Israeli soldier after her 15-year old cousin, Mohammed Tamimi was shot in the head, shattering his skull.

She could face 20 years in prison.

·@GaryLineker these Palestinian videos of child arrests are specially staged to solicit empathy from people like yourself. What pseudo journalists like @benabyad conveniently omit in editing are the violent provocations leading to these "on camera" arrests#BeAwareOfWhatYouShare pic.twitter.com/nNHe4D14FR

— Elad Ratson ?? (@EladRatson) December 18, 2017

Rights groups and civil society organizations from around the world are advocating for Tamimi’s release, as well as approximately 300 other Palestinian children who are languishing in Israeli prisons, in violation of International Law. Below is their full statment:

RT DaysofPalestine: New Amnesty International Annual Report states is Israel tortures Palestinian Children (Not th… pic.twitter.com/PURqXvsOBk

— عينك ع فلسطين (@followbot321) February 25, 2017

“Ahed Tamimi is a 16 year-old Palestinian girl living in Occupied Palestine. She is also a political leader, a global symbol of resistance to occupation and oppression. Palestine is under Israeli occupation and last month Ahed was filmed standing up to Israeli soldiers at her family home. Israeli forces had recently shot her 15 year-old cousin, Muhammad Fadel Tamimi, in the face with a rubber bullet at a protest against U.S. President Trump.

“When the soldiers raided her home, Ahed resisted. She defended her family, her land, and her people. For that, she now faces 12 charges before an Israeli military tribunal for everything from incitement to rock throwing. According to Haaretz, the Israeli military tribunals “deal with all criminal and security cases involving Palestinians, from their detention through their appeals” with 99.74 percent ending in conviction. Rock throwing alone carries a prison sentence of up to twenty years.

“Though she is young, Ahed has long been a leader in the struggle against the oppression of the Palestinian people. In yet another example of the United States government’s alliance with the occupation, Ahed was scheduled to participate in a January 2017 speaking tour No Child Behind Bars: Living Resistance From the US to Palestine, but the U.S. government put a hold on her visa and she was unable to attend.

“We unequivocally stand in solidarity with Ahed Tamimi and all those struggling for the liberation of the Palestinian people in Occupied Palestine. We also stand with the 63 Israeli youth who recently wrote a letter saying they won’t serve in the IDF. We recognize our government’s active collaboration with the occupation and oppression of the Palestinian people and we are against it, as evidenced by DSA’s 2017 national convention passing a resolution in support of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement. Ahed must be released from custody immediately, with the charges dropped–so too should the hundreds of other Palestinian children held in military detention.

“Should she be released and allowed to travel to the United States, we would be honored to co-sponsor an event at which Ahed and her family of leaders speak. We encourage all members to follow Ahed’s story and continue with our organization’s efforts to support the BDS movement.”

(Democratic Socialists of America, PC, Social Media)