OF THE
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Sadly, what is happening to Ahed is not the exception. Since 2000, at least 8,000 Palestinian children as young as 12 have been arrested and prosecuted by the Israeli military. The Israeli military detention system is notorious for the ill-treatment of children.The extent to which Shin Bet interrogators practice torture has been described as 'institutional'. In its 2016 report, Amnesty International found that Israeli forces and Shin Bet personnel had "tortured and otherwise ill-treated Palestinian detainees, including children, particularly during arrest and interrogation", with methods such as "beating with batons, slapping, throttling, prolonged shackling, stress positions, sleep deprivation and threats".
According to research of Defence for Children International - Palestine, almost two thirds of Palestinian children detained in the West Bank had endured physical violence after apprehension. In several cases (23% in 2013, for example), children have been either shown or made to sign documentation, presumably 'confessions', in Hebrew - a language they do not understand.
She went on to claim that the photo really wasn't that bad, but that Donald Trump had escalated matters by using her stunt as a "tool" to distract from "his bad news of the day."And, in case you missed it: Freak-show: Anti-Trump American celebrity Kathy Griffin sez she's on Interpol watch-list
"After that, I had to go offline because of the death threats," she said. "He didn't use my handle in his tweet, so he didn't have my followers coming after him."
Of course, it's not as though Donald Trump doesn't have his own detractors. Or that anyone watching the drama play out was somehow unaware of whom Trump was referencing.
Given that Griffin has often translated her own misfortune into success in stand-up, it's hard to believe that she's not wanted anywhere in the United States simply because of Donald Trump, but for now she's keeping to YouTube and other self-publishing platforms (except Twitter) where she can exert some measure of control over feedback.
"My YouTube is lit. I really do have a real story to tell. In my live act, I talk about the interrogation with the feds and how everybody turned on me on every platform," she said. "I still can't tweet a picture of my new puppies without getting all hateful responses in broken English."
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