Issa Amro has not only spoken out against Human Rights Violations by the Israeli military occupation, but has also been critical of the Palestinian Authority. In 2017, he was charged in a Palestinian court for disturbing ‘public order’ under Palestine’s Cyber Crime Law of 2017 as well as ‘insulting the higher authorities’ under the 1960 Jordanian Penal code still enforced in the West Bank.
A daily scene in Hebron: Palestinian resident of Shuahda Street reporting her assigned number to an Israel soldier at the entrance of her house.
Israeli authorities filed 18 charges against him. He was convicted of six of these charges and is facing up to 15 years in prison. The charges are all directly related to activism and include activities like organizing a demonstration and disobeying a soldier’s order. Amnesty International, the EU, the UN, and many international NGOs have released statements to express their concern over the prosecution of Mr. Amro. The Human Rights Defenders Fund, which is legally representing Issa Amro, claims that none of the charges cite any concrete violations, and, that Mr. Amro was wrongfully convicted as to set an example to intimidate others who speak up against injustice and Human Rights violations.
In 2010, Issa Amro was honored as the "human rights defender of the year in Palestine" by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
In his daily work he raises awareness for Palestinian rights and has led countless delegations of international journalists, and politicians through the old city of Hebron, where the impact of the occupation on Palestinians is most visible.
Supporting non-violent action has been a main priority of forumZFD's work in Palestine/Israel since 1999. forumZFD is therefore also deeply concerned about the repercussions that the case may have on other non-violent resistance movements in the region. We stand in solidarity with Issa Amro and our team in Jerusalem will continue to support Israeli and Palestinian activists who apply means of non-violent resistance to end the occupation and achieve profound social change.