Mohammed Omer shown with Benjamin Heine
A month ago I posted THIS. At the time it seemed virtually impossible for my dear Brother, Mohammed Omer to personally accept the reward in question, but with the assistance of the Dutch government it became a reality.
Mohammed, 24, was the youngest person to be awarded this prestigious prize. The Israeli government tried to prevent Mohammed Omer, who lives in the Rafah refugee camp, from leaving Gaza. Eventually, under international pressure he was able to leave and give a powerful and eloquent acceptance speech.
In that speech he dedicated his Martha Gellhorn Prize to the ‘Voiceless People of Palestine’. The speech can be seen and heard HERE, compliments of The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. His presentation is an extremely powerful insight into the life of Palestinians in Israeli-occupied Gaza.
It is so rare these days that I get the opportunity to post good news about Gaza or the people living there, this particular post gives me extreme personal pleasure. To my dear Brother, MABROUK! May you now be able to experience the Freedom of movement that every human being is entitled to. May we soon see you posting from a Free and United Palestine.
Karin said,
June 22, 2008 at 2:18 pm
I am very happy for and extremely proud of him!!! ALF MABROUK YA MOHAMMED!!
lennybruce said,
June 22, 2008 at 5:47 pm
Finally some great news. And I didnt know the Dutch gov’t had something to do about it. Didnt see anything about it here in the media. Today I can be proud to be Dutch (which is nice since my other two citizenships – American and Israeli – don’t leave much room for pride at the moment), especially after our loss last night in the Euro 2008 championship.
Karin said,
June 22, 2008 at 7:42 pm
@ lennybruce …
Take it easy – Ruud van Nistelroij shot a GREATgoal!! I watch most of the game and was impressed by the Dutch team … not to talk about all the ORANJES in the stands!!
Israel Is Nuts said,
June 23, 2008 at 7:14 am
Who are these crazy people who have hijacked all the policy decisions?
http://letsibeledmondsspeak.blogspot.com
Tim said,
June 23, 2008 at 9:32 pm
More power to this brave and courageous man!
C L O S E R » Mohammed Omer: journalist, price-winner receives ‘peppered’ welcome said,
June 28, 2008 at 11:52 am
[...] It proved to be problematic for Omer to receive his prize in person, but with the assistance of Dutch diplomats he could come to the ceremony in London. On his return however he seems to be mistreated by [...]
Palestinian Journalist beaten to unconsciousness « oPt said,
June 28, 2008 at 7:56 pm
[...] was in Britain, where he was the recipient of a prize for journalism. You can read about it HERE in a post I wrote earlier in the week. Mohammed’s ordeal is written about in an Action Alert [...]
UPDATE: Palestinian Journalist beaten to unconsciousness | Palestine Think Tank said,
June 29, 2008 at 12:06 am
[...] was in Britain, where he was the recipient of a prize for journalism. You can read about it HERE in a post I wrote earlier in the week. Mohammed’s ordeal is written about in an Action Alert [...]
ISRAELIS BEAT AND TORTURE RETURNING JOURNALIST « Therearenosunglasses’s Weblog said,
July 13, 2008 at 1:01 pm
[...] was in Britain, where he was the recipient of a prize for journalism. You can read about it HERE in a post I wrote earlier in the week. Mohammed’s ordeal is written about in an Action Alert [...]