Palestinian teenager Ahed Tamimi, who was detained by the Israeli regime in December in the context of her struggle for the freedom of her country, was released on Sunday, together with her mother Nariman, who had also been imprisoned since then. The teenager, who was 16 years old when she was detained, became an icon of the Palestinian resistance and exposed once again the detention of Palestinian children and teenagers by Israel.
“I hope that the campaigns that were done on my behalf will continue for the other political prisoners, especially the young children”, said Ahed in a press conference at the main square of Nabi Saleh, in occupied West Bank, according to EFE news agency.
Ahed belongs to a family of Palestinian activists who are fighting for the freedom of their country in Nabi Saleh village, surrounded by Israeli military posts.
The teenager was detained on December 19 after a video emerged showing her mother and cousin, who were also arrested, shouting at Israeli soldiers outside their home in Nabi Saleh. Ahed is shown slapping one of the military officers. Her cousin, Nour, was released later, and Ahed and her mother faced a military trial.
The events shown in the video in December took place shortly after Tamimi´s family found out that a cousin of Ahed had been shot in the head by the Israeli army. Years before, the teenager lost a cousin and an uncle, also murdered by the Israeli occupation army, her mother was shot and her father was imprisoned for over a year. In early 2018, another cousin of Ahed was murdered in the same way.
“The resistance continues until the occupation is removed” stated the activist in the press conference. The teenager was received by President Mahmoud Abbas, who considered her “a model of the Palestinian struggle for freedom, independence and statehood”.