#jamal abu joas

[garadinervi]

The Freedom Theatre attacked by the Israeli Army, Jenin refugee camp, December 13, 2023 (statement, photo, video) + Ahmed Tobasi, the artistic director at the Freedom Theatre, Speaks Out After Being Jailed & Beaten, Democracy Now!, December 15, 2023

«On the morning of the 13th of December, the Israeli army began attacking and ransacking The Freedom Theatre. They shot from inside the theatre, destroying the offices and knocking down a wall. The army then went to the homes of Ahmed Tobasi and Mustafa Sheta, blindfolded, handcuffed and took them away. That evening the army went to the home of Jamal Abu Joas and severely beat him and then took him. We can confirm (15:05 EET) that Tobasi has been released. He is suffering from leg and back pain where the Israeli Army beat him. We will update on his condition as soon as possible. After over 60 hours the full scale invasion by the Israeli Army has stopped. However invasions have been almost daily and we expect their return, and continue to be concerned for the safety of all. Upon being realised Tobasi said "They treated us like animals. They are trying to hurt us in any way they can, but it's important we stay strong". We continue to ask people to demand the immediate release of Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas, as with the over 100+ people taken by the Israeli Army in the last two days. Mustafa Sheta’s family continues to have no more information and no idea where he is. These attacks follow the murder of three members of The Freedom Theatre in the last few weeks including 17-year-old theatre participant Yamen Jarrar, 26-year-old Jehad Naghniyeh and 30 year old Mohammed Matahen. In June 2023 15-year-old Sadeel Naghnaghia and 17-year-old Mahmoud Al-Sadi theatre youth participant, were also murdered. Earlier in July The Freedom Theatre was damaged due to bombing, during a three-day invasion and Technician Adnan Torokman was detained for four days by the Israeli army. For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years. The Freedom Theatres Chair Of The Board is also detained in administrative detention since September 2022 as is Muhammad Abu Sakha from the Palestinian Circus School who has been detained since 9/6/2023. In the last few weeks in Gaza, an unprecedented number of writers, poets, theatremakers and journalists have been killed, including DR. Refaat Alareer, who was deliberately targeted and murdered. Israel continue to target and destroy buildings of cultural heritage, a war crime under international law. We thank everyone in Palestine and worldwide who has worked tirelessly to demand Tobasi's release. Our friends and allies continue to prove that collective action works.» – The Freedom Theatre

[corvidfeathers]

hey theater friends, I need you to pay attention to this. a friend of a friend of mine, Ahmed Tobasi from the Freedom Theatre, a community-based theatre and cultural centre in Jenin Refugee Camp in occupied Palestine was arrested by the IDF on December 13th, along with his brother and several other theater members. Tobasi was released today, but other members are still being held by the IDF. The theater is asking the international theater community to speak up about this, and let Israel know that our eyes are on this. They say, "we continue to ask people to demand the immediate release of Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas, as with the over 100+ people taken by the Israeli Army in the last two days."

You can read the Freedom Theatre's direct updates here. And on their twitter, here.

From their document:

For decades, Palestinian artists have been arbitrarily detained by Israel, sometimes for years, who also target and destroy cultural buildings, a war crime under international law. In the last few weeks in Gaza, an unprecedented number of writers, poets, theatremakers and journalists have been killed, including DR. Refaat Alareer, who was deliberately targeted and murdered.

[opencommunion]

The producer, artistic director, and an educator at The Freedom Theatre in Jenin were kidnapped alongside over 100 other Palestinians today (13 Dec 23). The Freedom Theatre is a hub of cultural resistance and artistic community in the occupied West Bank.

Join me in calling on theatre institutions to demand the immediate release of these kidnapped artists. Here's the email I'm sending; feel free to copy but please adjust the phrasing to avoid spam filters: "Today in Jenin refugee camp, The Freedom Theatre's artistic director Ahmed Tobasi, producer Mustafa Sheta, and acting teacher Jamal Abu Joas were taken hostage by the Israeli army alongside over one hundred other Palestinian civilians. This follows the murder of three Freedom Theatre artists in the last few weeks: Yamen Jarrar (17), Jehad Naghniyeh (26), and Mohammed Matahen (30). The global theatre community must stand up in support of artists persecuted by the occupation regime. There is extensive documentation of torture in Israeli occupation detention centers. I urge [name of organization] to issue a public statement demanding the immediate release of these hostages. Here's a recent article about The Freedom Theatre's work with traumatized children: [AJ link above]" I'm also adding a brief statement from my perspective as a theatre artist, expressing my disappointment in my local and national theatre scene for its silence. If you're a theatre artist or theatre-goer I encourage you to do the same! The international and US institutions I'm emailing: International Society for the Performing Arts - dbaile@ispa.org, mdriscoll@ispa.org, rjohnson@ispa.org, zcheng@ispa.org International Theatre Institute - info@iti-worldwide.org, hessa@cpo.fujairah.ae International Amateur Theatre Association - secretariat@aitaiata.net Theatre Without Borders - info@theatrewithoutborders.com ASSITEJ - president@assitej-international.org, sg@assitej-international.org, chris@assitej-international.org International Federation for Theatre Research - marcus.tan@nie.edu.sg IDEA- info@idea-austria.org International Schools Theatre Association - office@ista.co.uk, tom@ista.co.uk, helen@ista.co.uk, keriann@ista.co.uk Theatre for Young Audiences USA - info@tyausa.org, sbfala@gmail.com, saramorgulis@gmail.com American Association of Community Theatre - quiana@aact.org, david@aact.org, dvancleave@aact.org American Theatre Wing - mailbox@americantheatrewing.org, rachel@americantheatrewing.org American Theatre Magazine - rwkendt@tcg.org, ksmith@tcg.org, apierson@tcg.org, jpierce@tcg.org American Alliance for Theatre and Education - heidischo@gmail.com American Society for Theatre Research - president@astr.org, info@astr.org Theater of War - marjolaine@theaterofwar.com, bryan@theaterofwar.com Actors' Equity - jrice@actorsequity.org, kshindle@actorsequity.org, wcarter@actorsequity.org, abundonis@actorsequity.org The Broadway League - league@broadway.org PEN America - info@pen.org, education@pen.org Please also email organizations where you live, and any personal contacts in the performing arts. You can also tag organizations in the comments of The Freedom Theatre's posts on ig @.thefreedomtheatre

[catdotjpeg]

Ahmed Tobasi, one of the men associated with the Freedom Theatre in Jenin arrested by Israeli soldiers on Wednesday morning, has now been released. “They treated us like animals. They are trying to hurt us in anyway they can, but its important we stay strong,” he was quoted as saying in a social media post by the Freedom Theatre on Thursday evening. The post also showed footage of Tobasi’s ransacked home with items strewn everywhere by Israeli soldiers. Mustafa Sheta and Jamal Abu Joas, employees of the Freedom Theatre who were also detained, remain in custody. The Jenin theatre has received solidarity from around the world. In a post on Instagram, the Royal Court Theatre in London said it was “horrified to read of the attack” and called for the immediate release of the remaining men.

-- "Israeli soldiers treating men arrested from theatre like ‘animals’" by Farah Najjar, Ali Harb and Alastair McCready for Al Jazeera, 14 Dec 2023 20:45 GMT

The video can be seen on The Freedom Theatre's Twitter.

[clearlyangrylove]

Il Freedom Theatre di Jenin di nuovo sotto attacco, ma questa volta la solidarietà internazionale si fa sentire

Della Storia del piccolo teatro, e poi del Teatro della Libertà ne parlavo tempo fa

:https://www.tumblr.com/edizionistellecadenti/168136545951/a-jenin-sognano-ancora-un-teatro-un-libro?source=share

Da allora il Teatro ha fatto molta strada, e ha vissuto le vicissitudini di essere un teatro in un paese occupato che intende cancellare la cultura e la identità dei palestinesi. Jenin è uno dei punti focali della repressione. È di pochi giorni fa la notizia della incursione violenta dell'esercito nella sede del teatro, che ha lasciato distruzione e violazione persino dei muri, a cui è seguito l'arresto violento di tre persone, il direttore artistico del teatro, Ahmed Tobasi, il produttore Mustafa Sheta, e un diplomato dei corsi del teatro Jamal Abu Joas. 

Tobasi è poi stato rilasciato dopo poche ore, AbuJoas dopo una settimana di detenzione mentre Seta si è visto affibbiare sei mesi di detenzione amministrativa, quindi senza accuse o processo, ed ha potuto vedere solo per 10 minuti il suo avvocato, a sua volta convocato per rispondere a un tribunale militare.

Ma in questi anni il teatro si è fatto conoscere nel mondo, ed ha stabilito legami con altri teatri, che ora si stanno muovendo a sostegno del Teatro della Libertà.

Di seguito il link all'articolo originale : https://www.972mag.com/freedom-theatre-jenin-art-world-protests/