Ahed the brave

Seventeen-year-old Ahed Tamimi will serve a jail sentence for resisting Israeli military aggression. The eight-month jail sentence has been agreed under a plea deal in which she pleads guilty to four charges against her. The charges are unjust. The judicial process was unjust. The Israeli military occupation of Palestine is unjust. The fact that Tamimi will serve a jail sentence is a confirmation of the brutal nature of the apartheid regime that Israel has created in Palestine. The jail sentence is only a minor part of what the Tamimi case has revealed about the nature of the Israeli state. The narrative from the Israeli state is that this is not a young girl but a terrorist. Her crime: trying to stop soldiers from an occupation force from entering her house. In a just world, it would be the soldiers who would be tried for a potential breach of war regulations. In yet another indictment of global humanitarian claims, this case has been met with global silence.

Within the context of Israel and Palestine, what is clear is that Israel does not want Tamimi to become a symbol of global resistance, but this is exactly what she has become. It seems that the publicity that the case has received has been key to the plea deal that has been offered to her – not that Israel will admit to this. It would prefer not to make Tamimi into another martyr for the Palestinian people and their supporters, but also not to appear too soft on young Palestinians who resist Israeli occupation forces. Tamimi is one amongst many young Palestinians who end up going through the Israeli judicial and penal system. That children are the continuous target of the cowardly Zionist state of Israel is another reflection of its shallow foundations. When Malala was shot we raised the slogan: ‘those with guns fear one unarmed girl.’ Ahed Tamimi has reminded us of the power of one unarmed teenager. Tamimi’s bravery will continue to be celebrated by millions of Palestinians who continue to live under occupation. When she is released from jail, she will return home a hero and a symbol of the need for resistance to continue despite oppression.