MEMO | July 27, 2020
The Israeli authorities have prevented two Palestinian women from leaving the occupied West Bank for Jordan because their newborn babies are not registered in the Zionist state, Wafa news agency has reported.
Although the babies are registered with the Palestinian Interior Ministry, they were not allowed to cross into Jordan via the Allenby Bridge.
A number of Palestinians have been denied travel recently at the Israeli-controlled border crossing with Jordan. The bridge connects the West Bank with the Hashemite Kingdom and is the sole designated exit and entry point for West Bank Palestinians travelling into and out of the Israeli occupied territories.
The women were attempting to travel to Jordan to be reunited with their husbands who work in the UAE, after giving birth in the occupied territories. Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Ahmad Al-Dik condemned Israel’s actions and asserted the right of the babies to stay with their mothers.
“This stance by the occupation state is a violation of the Geneva Conventions,” he explained, “which guarantee freedom of movement for people under occupation, particularly since the two women carry valid documents for themselves and their babies issued by the State of Palestine, which is under occupation.”
Rights groups have pointed out that preventing Palestinians from travelling through this crossing is part of the political pressure put on them. It bears no relation to any valid security or other issues, they insisted.