Kate Laycock

A harrowing account from imprisoned Palestianin journalist Farah Abu Ayyash has emerged: Her lawyer, Hassan Abadi, who recently visited her in Damon Prison, said that what she shared was not just a legal testimony, but a direct, personal description of the severe abuse she has suffered since her arrest. In the letter conveyed through her lawyer, Farah recounts: “I experienced so many horrific things. They arrested me in the middle of the night with dozens of soldiers, two female recruits, and numerous jeeps and police vehicles. I never imagined I would be targeted. They took me to Karmeh Tzur, tied me to a chair outside, next to a pipe dripping filthy water onto me.” She continues describing the torture: “The female soldiers tightened the white plastic restraints on my wrist so hard that my artery swelled. An officer eventually cut them off with pliers. Dogs tore at my pants. Then they put me in solitary—just a room filled with electrical boxes. They pretended not to know I was a journalist. They forced me to unlock my phone… I work with complete transparency.” Farah describes her transfer to the Russian Compound: “It was like a horror film. They shoved me inside with handcuffs, leg shackles, and a heavy chain on my shoulders. Nahshon officers beat me. A female soldier grabbed my hair, slammed my head into the wall, and ordered me to kiss the Israeli flag. I refused. She kicked me. I was sick.” Her voice, she says, was shaking as she added: “In Ramla, they put me in an abandoned room and turned off the light. I screamed. Then they placed me in an underground cell infested with cockroaches, insects, and bedbugs. I cried all night. Cockroaches covered my face and body. The marks are still there.” She explains that she was later taken back to the Russian Compound, fainted multiple times from the cold, and that the transport conditions were “extremely harsh and terrifying.” After 55 days, she was moved to Damon Prison. Expressing her disappointment in her peers, she says: “I’m hurt by my fellow journalists. They didn’t create pressure or raise their voices for my release. I was arrested because of my work. I hope every free journalist hears me.” Farah also sends words to her family, especially her mother: “I miss you so much… I tell the girls about the ma’amoul you make. My most cherished memories are the poems you wrote for me and how I used to recite them on the radio.”

Olaf Scholz is still fighting, but the chances of the German government coalition surviving this week look pretty slim. Get ready for a breakup as early as tomorrow. Personally, I don’t think the U.S. election will matter that much. With Trump, a fresh start might be even better