Israel - Situation of Salah Hamouri - Q&A - (24 Mar. 2022)

Q: The French-Palestinian lawyer Salah Hamouri was sentenced on March 10 to four months of administrative detention by the Israeli military court, which maintains that he “endangers security in the region,” according to accusations filed against him. Our fellow citizen is once again being harassed by the Israeli regime. A few days ago, President Macron spoke out publicly in support of the Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova, who is openly criticizing Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine. Does France intend to respond publicly and just as strongly with regard to Salah Hamouri – who is openly criticizing Tel Aviv’s military operation in the Palestinian territories – in order to secure his release, his right to live in the land where he was born, and his right to live with his family, which, for the time being, can’t join him because Israel has barred them from entering the country?

A: Following the arrest of our compatriot Salah Hamouri, the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris, the French Consulate General in Jerusalem and the French Embassy in Israel were immediately and fully mobilized.

The Israeli authorities were asked to provide explanations for this latest arrest and to ensure that all of Mr. Hamouri’s rights are respected and that he is able to exercise all legal remedies.

Salah Hamouri is entitled to the consular protection provided for by the Vienna Convention of April 24, 1963, as would any other French citizen detained abroad who requests it. Thus, officials from the French Consulate General in Jerusalem were able to visit him on March 21.

We have been monitoring Mr. Hamouri’s situation closely at a high level for a long time. We reiterate our demand that he be allowed to lead a normal life in Jerusalem, where he was born and where he lives, and that his wife and children be allowed to rejoin him there.