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Israel holds mother of detained Palestinian girl

Anadolu Agency WORLD
Published December 19,2017
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Israeli forces on Tuesday detained the mother of Ahed al-Tamimi, a Palestinian girl who was awarded a Turkish prize in 2012 for her courage against Israeli soldiers.

Ahed, 16, was arrested in an Israeli raid on her house in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh early Tuesday.

"My wife went to a detention center east of Ramallah to check on our detained daughter, but she has not come back home," husband Bassem al-Tamimi told Anadolu Agency.

"We were told by our lawyer that she has been detained," he said.

In 2012, Ahed was awarded with "Hanzala Courage Award" by Başakşehir Municipality in Istanbul for challenging Israeli soldiers who had arrested her brother.

At the time, then Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (the current president of Turkey) and his wife had met the Palestinian girl.

Ahed's father, mother and brothers had been repeatedly arrested by Israeli forces for their opposition to the decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Tuesday that the Palestinian girl would not be the only one to bear the consequences of her actions.

"Her parents and her surroundings won't get away from what they deserve," Lieberman said during a meeting with community leaders on Gaza border.

Tension has been high in the Palestinian territories since U.S. President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital earlier this month, triggering protests across the Arab and Muslim world, as well as worldwide condemnations.

Since then, 11 Palestinians have been martyred and over 3,000 injured during several protests in West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

According to Palestinian official figures, more than 6,400 Palestinians are currently held in detention facilities throughout Israel.