[ ]J Street [ ]
Israeli soldiers dragged Palestinian-American Omar Assad from his car in
the early hours of the morning, leaving him bound and blindfolded outside
in the middle of January. When the soldiers eventually untied him, he was
slumped and non-responsive. They did not seek medical attention.

We’re calling on the Biden Administration to continue to push for an
Israeli criminal investigation, and to hold its own investigation into Mr.
Assad’s death and Israel’s treatment of Palestinian civilians in occupied
territory. Sign our petition if you agree.

[ [link removed] ]Friends -- Add Your Name

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Last night, MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan discussed our call for justice and
investigation on national TV. [ [link removed] ]You can watch his powerful segment here.

Friends --

I just wanted to make sure you saw our petition last week calling for
justice and accountability following the tragic death of 78-year-old
Palestinian-American Omar Assad.

A Milwaukee grocery store owner, Mr. Assad had retired with his wife to
his hometown of Jiljilya in the West Bank. His family describes him as a
joyful, loving and adoring father and husband.

[3]Omar Assad and his family via Haaretz

Omar Assad and his family at a festive celebration, via Haaretz.

At J Street, we strongly support the Biden administration’s efforts to
secure a criminal investigation into the death of this US citizen, and are
also calling on the US government to conduct its own investigation. [ [link removed] ]You
can add your name to our petition here >>

We also recognize the systemic issues this tragic event lays bare: The
persistent injustice that the military occupation presents to all
Palestinians in the occupied territories.

According to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, almost 50 Palestinians
were killed by Israeli forces in arrests, protests or clashes in the West
Bank last year -- a distressing number that includes more than 10
children.

These figures underscore not only the alarming level of threat and
intimidation faced by Palestinians, but the corrosive effect of occupation
on Israel, to the detriment of our vision of a truly just, democratic and
peaceful future for all Israelis.

Together, we must do more to ensure our support for Israel actually is
backing our shared vision for a secure, free and prosperous future for all
Israelis and Palestinians. We must ensure US-supplied equipment is used
for legitimate security needs, not to support arbitrary arrests,
indefinite occupation or demolitions and settlement expansion.

[ [link removed] ]Please take a moment now to read, sign and share our petition for
justice and accountability >>

Yours sincerely,
Debra Shushan
Director of Government Affairs

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Friends --

Omar Assad was 78 and walked with a cane. Still, his family said whenever
he was in the room, he was the life of the party.

Born in the British Mandate of Palestine, Mr. Assad ran a grocery store in
Milwaukee and lived in America for 40 years, becoming a US citizen in the
1980s. 

In 2009, he moved back to retire with his wife in his hometown of Jiljilya
in the occupied West Bank. Three weeks ago, he died after being detained
at an Israeli military checkpoint.

Soldiers dragged Mr. Assad from his car in the early hours of the morning,
leaving him bound, blindfolded and gagged at a cold construction site.
When he was eventually untied, he was slumped and non-responsive.

The soldiers abandoned Mr. Assad without seeking medical aid, later
telling investigators they thought he was asleep. Witnesses said Mr. Assad
was left blindfolded on his stomach, that he was not breathing, and that
his face had turned blue. An autopsy found he died of a stress-induced
heart attack.

[ [link removed] ]Add your name to urge the Biden Administration to thoroughly
investigate Mr. Assad’s death and Israel’s treatment of Palestinian
civilians >>

For Palestinian civilians, arbitrary arrests, excessive force and deaths
at the hands of Israeli authorities in the occupied West Bank are
distressingly and unacceptably frequent. Accountability and consequences
for those responsible are very rare.

In this terrible case, involving an American citizen, diplomatic pressure
is making a difference.

An internal IDF investigation resulted in professional suspensions for the
officers involved, with a report finding the incident to be “grave and
unfortunate” and a result of “moral failure and poor decision-making.” Yet
no systemic changes were recommended -- and given the appalling nature of
what happened to Omar Assad, and the fact that it was not an isolated
incident, this hardly feels sufficient.

Importantly, the US State Department is now pushing for a more
comprehensive criminal investigation to ensure a measure of justice and
accountability for Mr. Assad’s grieving family. And from the state of
Wisconsin, Senator Tammy Baldwin and Congresswoman Gwen Moore have called
on the US government to launch its own investigation into reports that
conflict with the IDF’s version of events, and to investigate whether US
laws may have been violated in this incident. This is critically important
Congressional leadership, and we are proud to echo and support it.

At J Street we strongly support the push for greater accountability and
justice. Along with elected representatives from Omar Assad’s home state,
we’re urging the US to investigate whether the nature and method of Mr.
Assad’s detention are common practice in Israel’s occupation of the West
Bank and whether US-supplied military equipment is used in such instances
contrary to US law, Palestinian rights and Israel’s own true security
interests.

[ [link removed] ]Read, sign and share our letter to the US government >>

As an American, Mr. Assad deserves the justice due to any US citizen
harmed abroad. As a Palestinian and a human being, he deserves
accountability from those who violated his most basic rights.

As supporters of peace, equality and freedom for both Israelis and
Palestinians, we must stand up to the oppressive and all too often deadly
occupation that tramples on the rights of civilians, fuels the conflict
and obstructs hopes for a better future. We must insist that our
government face up to and investigate the harmful realities on the ground
and work tirelessly to change them -- for the sake of both peoples and our
own democratic values.

Thank you, sincerely, for your attention to this.

Yours,

Dylan Williams
Senior Vice President of Policy and Strategy


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