Israeli army prevents ‘symbolic marriage’ near barrier
RAMALLAH: The Israeli army prevented a symbolic wedding from
being held on Saturday near the West Bank separation barrier aimed at
denouncing obstacles to unions between Palestinians and Israeli Arabs,
an AFP correspondent said.
The “marriage” was to have been held at an army roadblock between
Jerusalem and Ramallah in the West Bank, with an Israeli Arab bride
coming from Nazareth in northern Israel.
But the army prevented the bride from arriving at the site and
soldiers used stun grenades to disperse about 50 Palestinians who had
gathered at the other side of the roadblock, causing no injuries.
The ceremony, planned as part of a campaign run under the theme “Love
in the time of apartheid” was organised by Palestinians to denounce what
they say are “racist laws that prohibit the reunification of families”.
In January 2012, the Israeli Supreme Court endorsed a law banning
Palestinians married to Israeli Arabs from obtaining Israeli citizenship
or even residing in the Jewish state.
“This legislation deprives Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza
Strip and those with Israeli citizenship the right to family reunion and
rights to reside where they wish to, contrary to international law,”
organisers said. Since 1993, more than 100,000 Palestinians have
obtained a residency marriage permit in Israel, but these have fallen
sharply in recent years, by up to 1,000a year, according to Interior
Minister Eli Yshai. Around 20 percent, or 1.3 million people, in Israel
are Israeli Arabs.
AFP |