‘They try to break us’: Pro-Palestine activists in Czech custody

Prague, Czech Republic – Youssef Moursi, a 25-year-old Egyptian assemblage pupil and activistic successful Prague, has spent the past six months successful pre-trial detention, accused of an arson onslaught successful March against a Czech weapons mill with alleged ties to Israel.

Moursi is 1 of 11 radical being charged with “terrorism” for the onslaught and could look up to 20 years successful situation if convicted.

The lawsuit has echoes of ineligible battles successful the United Kingdom, wherever Palestine Action activists person been sentenced nether coercion laws, and Germany, wherever 5 radical accused of targeting a tract linked to Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapons maker, are connected trial.

Moursi, a humanities pupil astatine Charles University, said successful a connection to Al Jazeera that “a radical of equipped and masked policemen smashed down [my] beforehand door”, 2 days aft the alleged attack, successful which helium denies immoderate involvement.

He spent the archetypal 3 months of his detention successful solitary confinement, according to his lawyer. Today, helium is allowed 1 hr extracurricular his compartment and 20 minutes connected the telephone a day, with visits from friends and household each 2 weeks.

“[There] is the intelligence beforehand being waged against us, wherever [the police] deliberately effort to interruption america by putting immoderate of america successful solitary confinement for months, denying america visits, blocking correspondence, oregon spreading fear,” Moursi said. “Putting radical successful custody and prolonging it clip and clip again without nonstop evidence, chiefly based connected a premix of inclinations, activism, racism, and an attempted blurring of state of speech, is unacceptable.”

Moursi and his lawyer, Pavel Cizinsky, judge helium has been targeted due to the fact that of his engagement successful pro-Palestine activism successful Prague.

Cizinsky said portion of the grounds constabulary person against Moursi is that connected the time aft the fire, helium posted proposal for pro-Palestinian activists connected societal media, should they beryllium approached by officers. Cizinsky called this “ridiculous.”

“If you enactment into Google what to bash erstwhile interviewed by the police, the archetypal proposal is hold for your lawyer. But if you accidental it arsenic a pro-Palestinian activist, if you constitute it to your friends, past it’s crushed against you that you are guilty,” Cizinsky said.

At the opening of the investigation, Cizinsky said helium faced unit from the authorities not to instrumentality the case. As a result, helium was not contiguous during the archetypal interrogation and location raid connected Moursi’s flat.

“It is wide that determination is bonzer attraction to this probe by the police, and truly large resources dedicated to this case,” Cizinsky said. “But the information that helium is already 5 months successful situation is surely a breach of law.”

Under Czech law, individuals held successful pre-trial detention who person not been convicted indispensable person their detention reviewed by a tribunal each 3 months. Moursi’s detention has truthful acold been reviewed twice, with the tribunal deciding each clip that helium indispensable enactment successful prison.

His detention volition beryllium reviewed again successful aboriginal December, and the proceedings is expected to commencement wrong a year.

The occurrence broke retired successful the aboriginal hours of March 20 astatine LPP Holding, a Czech weapons mill successful Pardubice, astir 120km (75 miles) eastbound of Prague.

No 1 was injured but constabulary said the gathering was destroyed, with harm estimates reaching hundreds of millions of crowns, oregon astatine slightest 4 cardinal euros.

A antecedently chartless pro-Palestinian radical called The Earthquake Faction claimed work and posted videos of the fire, saying it targeted LPP Holding for its practice with Elbit Systems, an Israeli weapons company.

In 2023, LPP Holding and Elbit Systems announced a concern to physique drones successful the Czech Republic. But connected the time of the fire, an LPP Holding spokesperson told Czech media the collaboration ne'er happened.

The occurrence wrong LPP Holding aft the alleged arson onslaught [Courtesy of The Earthquake Faction]

In the weeks pursuing the attack, constabulary launched a manhunt and arrested respective overseas nationals including Ukrainian, Czech, Slovak, Polish and American citizens. Of the 10 different individuals accused, 3 are nether location apprehension successful Poland and 7 stay down bars successful the Czech Republic.

Over the past 2 years, Elbit Systems has go a superior people for pro-Palestine activists crossed Europe.

In June, a UK tribunal convicted 4 imprisoned Palestine Action members of transgression harm with a “terrorist connection” aft a raid connected an Elbit Systems mill successful Filton, adjacent Bristol. In September past year, constabulary successful Poland arrested protesters astatine an arms just for throwing reddish liquid implicit an Elbit Systems stand. This week, an aged antheral successful Germany was arrested aft protesting against the Israeli weapons giant.

In Prague, the ambiance for pro-Palestinian activists has grown progressively tense.

A corporate called Prague 4 Palestine Youth stopped organising demonstrations and foundation events aft constabulary investigations into dozens of its members successful the months pursuing the arson attack.

Rue, a 25-year-old Czech activistic who requested anonymity, said that friends of those detained successful the arson lawsuit and chap activists are being subjected to interrogations, location raids, and indefinite confiscations of their devices arsenic the probe continues.

Nine days aft the fire, Rue said, “[The police] interrogated us, and past they took america backmost to [our] flat wherever they did a hunt of the house. They kept america awake for much than 24 hours. I was having panic attacks for a week consecutive aft it happened.”

An October 10 protestation successful Prague calling for an extremity to Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza [Isabella Fattore/Al Jazeera]

After the interrogation and location search, Rue was told they were being treated arsenic a witnesser to the arson attack. The constabulary confiscated their telephone and computer, which person not been returned.

Rue believes they were investigated due to the fact that of their relationship with suspects successful the arson case. They person visited 2 successful prison; 1 is successful solitary confinement for 23 hours a day, Rue said.

“When it comes to the extremity of the visit, the tears come,” Rue added. “You’re escaped to spell anyplace and bash anything, and they spell backmost to being successful those 4 walls.”

The individuals detained successful the Czech Republic could stay successful situation for up to 4 years without being convicted, according to their lawyers.

Police confirmed they person arrested and charged suspects of respective antithetic nationalities and remanded them successful custody.

“Given the gravity of the lawsuit and the ongoing probe into terrorism-related offences, the supervising nationalist prosecutor’s bureau has assumed exclusive authorization to merchandise information,” the constabulary said.