Kawther Salam
Encyclopedia
Kawther Salam is a Palestinian journalist from Hebron. She has worked for Al-Ittihad
, al-Hayat al-Jadida
, and Al-Quds Al-Arabi
. The Israeli organization, Gush Shalom
, published a weekly diary of her experiences in Hebron on its website. She also collaborated on three films for Israeli television stations. Salam reported on human rights abuses by the Israeli military, naming particular soldiers, and filing legal complaints against them; she also lists Jewish settler
activists alongside soldiers on her website as "terrorists."
She claims has been attacked by Israeli soldiers on several occasions and filed a lawsuit after one incident where her arm was broken. Two incidents of abuse towards Salam were documented in the 2001 Human Rights Watch
report, Center of the Storm: a Case Study of Human Rights Abuses in Hebron District. Following death threats from Israeli military personnel, settlers, and "extreme Muslim findamentalists," she applied for and was granted political asylum
in Vienna, Austria on December 5, 2002. The International Press Institute
(IPI) and the International Federation of Journalists
(IFJ) both intervened on her behalf in her asylum application.
Salam's reports in 2000 on Israeli military corruption led to internal investigations of two Israeli officers. Prior to receiving asylum in Austria, Daniel Seaman
, director of the Israel Government Press Office, made it known that Salam would not be allowed to work as a journalist under Israeli jurisdiction. According to the IPI, the only apparent reason for this action was "that she is a Palestinian critical reporter and that the army and the Israeli settlers do not 'recognise' her work." Salam reports, according to the IPI, that "Seaman threatened to have her arrested if she ever came to his office for a renewal of her press card again." Aidan White, General Secretary of the IFJ, personally intervened on Salam's behalf and described the rules under which she was stripped of her press credentials as "completely inappropriate form of apartheid discrimination against all Palestinians."
In 2003, Salam was one of 28 writers in 13 countries to receive a Hellman/Hammett Grant from Human Rights Watch "in recognition of their courage in the face of political persecution."
Al-Ittihad (Israeli newspaper)
Al-Ittihad is an Israeli Arabic language daily newspaper based in Haifa. Once considered the most important Arab media outlet in Israel, it is owned by Maki, the Israeli Communist Party, and was edited by a former Maki/Hadash Knesset member, Ahmad Sa'd until his death on 20 April 2010.-History:The...
, al-Hayat al-Jadida
Al-Hayat al-Jadida
Al-Hayat al-Jadida , is an official daily newspaper of the Palestinian National Authority.- External links :*...
, and Al-Quds Al-Arabi
Al-Quds Al-Arabi
Al-Quds Al-Arabi , is an independent pan-Arab daily newspaper published in London since 1989. The paper is owned by Palestinian expatriates, and edited by Abd al-Bari Atwan who was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in Gaza Strip in 1950. Its motto is . Its circulation is estimated to be...
. The Israeli organization, Gush Shalom
Gush Shalom
Gush Shalom is an Israeli peace activism group founded and led by former Irgun and Knesset Member and journalist, Uri Avnery, in 1993...
, published a weekly diary of her experiences in Hebron on its website. She also collaborated on three films for Israeli television stations. Salam reported on human rights abuses by the Israeli military, naming particular soldiers, and filing legal complaints against them; she also lists Jewish settler
Israeli settlement
An Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
activists alongside soldiers on her website as "terrorists."
She claims has been attacked by Israeli soldiers on several occasions and filed a lawsuit after one incident where her arm was broken. Two incidents of abuse towards Salam were documented in the 2001 Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
report, Center of the Storm: a Case Study of Human Rights Abuses in Hebron District. Following death threats from Israeli military personnel, settlers, and "extreme Muslim findamentalists," she applied for and was granted political asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
in Vienna, Austria on December 5, 2002. The International Press Institute
International Press Institute
International Press Institute is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. Founded in October 1950, the IPI has members in over 120 countries....
(IPI) and the International Federation of Journalists
International Federation of Journalists
International Federation of Journalists, IFJ, is a global union federation of journalists' trade unions—the largest in the world. The organization aims to protect and strengthen the rights and freedoms of journalists...
(IFJ) both intervened on her behalf in her asylum application.
Salam's reports in 2000 on Israeli military corruption led to internal investigations of two Israeli officers. Prior to receiving asylum in Austria, Daniel Seaman
Daniel Seaman
Daniel Seaman is the Deputy Director General for Information at the Israeli Ministry of Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs. He formerly served as the Director of the Israel Government Press Office , part of the Office of the Prime Minister in Jerusalem responsible for the foreign media...
, director of the Israel Government Press Office, made it known that Salam would not be allowed to work as a journalist under Israeli jurisdiction. According to the IPI, the only apparent reason for this action was "that she is a Palestinian critical reporter and that the army and the Israeli settlers do not 'recognise' her work." Salam reports, according to the IPI, that "Seaman threatened to have her arrested if she ever came to his office for a renewal of her press card again." Aidan White, General Secretary of the IFJ, personally intervened on Salam's behalf and described the rules under which she was stripped of her press credentials as "completely inappropriate form of apartheid discrimination against all Palestinians."
In 2003, Salam was one of 28 writers in 13 countries to receive a Hellman/Hammett Grant from Human Rights Watch "in recognition of their courage in the face of political persecution."
External links
- Salam's personal web site: The Daily Life of Kawther Salam
- Salam's Hebron diary, Hell Made in Israel, on the Gush Shalom web site