SriLankan Airlines: ‘Bugger Off’ Gracefully Or Be ‘Sacked’ – Director Board To Decide CEO Ratwatte’s Fate

January 30, 2018

SriLankan Airlines CEO Suren Ratwatte who is currently holidaying in Melbourne Australia is to tender his resignation before the 2nd of February 2018, Colombo Telegraph reliably learns.

Earlier when the Board of Directors of SriLankan Airlines had convened on the 25th of January 2018, they had unanimously agreed that the services of CEO Ratwatte should be terminated. Their decision had been conveyed to CEO Ratwatte and he was verbally asked to resign last week.

However instead of informing of his decision CEO Ratwatte took wing to Melbourne Australia.
The Board of Directors who are scheduled to meet once again on the 2nd of February 2018 will now decide on an exit package which they will implement by the end of February 2018, if in the event CEO Ratwatte does not tender his resignation.

 

Colombo Telegraph reliably learns that if CEO Ratwatte does not resign, he will be sacked.
Ratwatte is the brother of Charitha Ratwatte a close confidante and current advisor to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe

The Sunday Times newspaper in its headlined article titled “SriLankan Board votes to sack CEO Ratwatte” published on 28th January 2018 went on to state “However, the Sunday Times learns that Prime Minister Wickremesinghe has said that a ‘caretaker board of directors’ had no power to take such action. He said the removal of the CEO would be a matter for the Minister in charge of the airline, Kabir Hashim to decide. There was also a Ministerial Committee and a separate Restructuring Committee of the airline that needed to be consulted”.

Sources close to the Prime Minister’s office when contacted said “The above statement published in the Sunday Times is incorrect. The Board of Directors has every right to sack the CEO of SriLankan Airlines. This is not a ‘caretaker’ Board of Directors, but a fully-fledged Board appointed over two years ago. They have every right to decide whats good for the airline”.

A very close associate of Chairman Ajith Dias speaking to Colombo Telegraph said “The Board of Directors has decided to give Suren Ratwatte the opportunity of resigning. This is the noble way of asking him to serve his three month notice period prior to departing. He would then stand to be paid his wages during his notice period which would be approximately Rs 9 million. He also has the opportunity then to seek employment elsewhere. If in the event he is terminated it does not look too good for him. After all he made a decision to leave behind a very lucrative package at Emirates Airline where he was flying the A380 as a Captain and opt for a lower wage when joining the national carrier”.

 

Meanwhile last December, employees of the national carrier had begun to despise the presence of CEO Ratwatte in office.

The airline’s Alliance of Unions that represents every employee sent in a letter to the Board of Directors and copied President Maithripala Sirisena and Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe seeking his removal. This was after employees began to lose faith and trust in his competence, decision making abilities and and most of all his abuse of power.

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How to crash an airline – slaughter and slaying of SriLankan

Wednesday, 31 January 2018

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking. We have a major issue at hand. We’ve lost power in both of our engines and are on free fall. Keep your seat-belt fastened and brace for impact.”

It’s not just SriLankan Airlines that’s in the red requiring immediate resuscitation but the nation’s economy as well. It should have reached the stars after the battle was won in 2009. It seems God did not confer such great blessings on Mother Lanka. Or were the citizens just cheated, deceived and taken on a huge ride where billions if not trillions of rupees just got evaporated?

Anyway, the nation is in a dilemma, exponentially increasing issues. They seem to cascade. Only responses are meaningless rhetoric, characteristic hyperbole and downright balderdash. The jolly citizen Silva from the island paradise shrieks “ohama yang, ohama yang”.

It’s outrageously ironical that at a time when the global airline industry continues to grow with projected global revenues expected to exceed a trillion dollars our own “cash cow” with all her inherently radiant beauty, dazzling features and great attributes as a unique marketable product remains calamitously struck, wantonly abused, egregiously misused and the entity converted to cacophonous bagnio. SriLankan Airlines has become a notorious synonym for blatant nepotism and a hot place for political “droppings” of all hues.

Reminiscent of a typical village setting in South India where invitees preparing for a social event in the city hire a bus and load all and sundry for the journey. Some even bring poultry, others dare with the four-legged. This is exactly how the National Airline has turned out to be. Treated and managed especially by the previous regime in the most despicable manner. Obscene salaries disproportionate to performance. Hiring and firing of CEOs analogous to changing of undergarments, not to mention political rewards for party loyalists courtesy of SriLankan Airlines.

Then there is the ugly spectacle of the Emirates-appointed Chief Executive of SriLankan Airlines Peter Hill. He had his work permit revoked following a dispute with the former Sri Lankan President. It all started when Hill refused to bump 35 passengers from a full London-Colombo flight to make way for Sri Lanka’s President and his jumbo entourage. The rest is history.

The disreputable panderers to make the rotting more interesting increased the number of birds and created another brand, another airline. Filled it with sybarites and profligates to advance its decrepitude and moribundity. Politically-connected septuagenarians, paramours of VIPs, female acolytes of youth-wing political parties and general loafing factotums found unhindered refuge in the bordello. If this was not enough, flights were diverted to pick up friends of politicians and VIPs. Surely the canine species too got royal treatment from the airline. Its signature ‘You’re our world’ was indeed inclusive and expansive. The debilitating scourge well lubricated with taxpayer’s funds.

Doomed to crash

 SriLankan Airlines, the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member of the oneworld alliance, was doomed to crash from the very inception. Launched in 1979 as Air Lanka, successors to the original Sri Lankan Flag carrier Air Ceylon, it never actually took off due to politics and politicians of “Aasikland” – a rare breed indeed. She just kept plummeting to earth, only supported by timely interventions to prolong the inevitable.

Following acquisition in 1998 by Emirates hopes were re-ignited. A re-branded jet flying low over Colombo Galle Face was really something. I remember that day quite vividly. Like a kid watched the aircraft pass me. Its livery emboldening, partnership solid. It was heart soothing.

As a hard-core marketer and a firm believer in its business philosophy I thought the worst was certainly over for the airline. How woefully wrong was I?

Intoxicated with power and exuding disdain and heedlessness, the previous regime didn’t care two hoots. It had to do what it had to do. A treasure trove converted to a s**t-hole – to borrow a term from the “great” Donald Trump. It’s no surprise why the earlier tagline – ‘Taste of Paradise’ – had to go. A little bird whispers that dwellers of paradise had disowned the airline and kept a distance whenever the “dhandu monara” got closer, “Appachhia ganda” seemed to have been the stentorian exclamation.

The airline business

The airline business is not transportation business, certainly not. Such optics are inherently detrimental and constitutes a gnawing myopia. It’s service, hospitality and more importantly experience. The accent is on how to evolve and efficiently manage the evolution. Every member of the airline fraternity strives to out beat the other by providing a pleasant and outstanding experience and being rewarded with higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Success is not overnight. It takes years of hard work, commitment and tenacity. This is why the management needs support from governments and not unsolicited interventions. They are a drain on precious and scarce resources. If the complex business mantra of managing an airline is easily replicable, tomorrow Zimbabwe could purchase an Airbus 380 superjumbo and catapult itself to a number one position.

That’s not how it works. It starts with a brand that’s strategically developed. It does not work in a lacuna but in relation to competition and in a clearly identified space. In this regard what Sri Lanka has in terms of product attributes is far superior to either Singapore, Dubai or Qatar but thanks to our politicians we lost it all and maybe lost it for good.

Brand identity

A brand is a complex amalgam. It represents meaning through a process of multi-dimensional action. Main function of a brand is to create distinction and clarity in an extremely busy marketplace. One should be able to differentiate the offering clearly from the competition. The manifestation of the brand must resonate well with the target audience. A beating drum that pulses through how you and your employees make decisions, interact with one another, and deliver on your promise.

This brand identity must be cleverly, persuasively and decisively communicated and customer/s must see reciprocal consonance not dissonance. Your brand is not one but all of the above, working together constantly to form a cohesive whole. It’s much more than swapping out the logo on the homepage. ‘Marketing from the Inside Out’ means thinking strategically and holistically about identity and purpose.

Take the iconic Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its long and enduring journey. Training, training and training takes a service to real tangible heights. This is the success of SIA. This is the core – the service, not easily replicated. Service levels are so highly systematised at SIA it tells its male and female cabin crew and airport staff how to cut their hair, what color makeup to wear, how many teeth to show in a smile, when not to smile, how to make even the plebeians in economy feel like they are getting great personal service, etc. This is what is known as going to the length, breadth and depth of an ecosystem.

Also SIA prides itself in the advantage of a politics-free top management. SriLankan Airlines can learn a lot from this. Service that is unparalleled, whether cabin crew or ground staff. Flights rarely delayed. The refresh paper towel is unique, its redolence patented.

Good food and with choice, importance to local menus and cuisine. Choice of international brand of beverages. SIA maintains a young fleet and works with close coordination with the Singapore Tourism Board in attracting millions of tourists.

In 2016 the Emirates Group announced its 28th consecutive year of profit and steady business expansion. The Dubai-based aviation group ended the financial year (to 31 March 2016) with record profits of $2.2 billion up 50% year on year, despite global economic and political challenges. Emirates Airline’s total passenger and cargo capacity reached 56.4 billion ATKMs (Available Ton Kilometres), cementing its position as the world’s largest international airline.

Even India which opened its economy long after Sri Lanka did has put its house in order vis-à-vis the airline industry. Post liberalisation has paid dividend after the initial correction. Deregulation seem to be working.

“It’s your captain again we’ve managed to get power in one of our engines but instead of proceeding to Colombo we’re diverting the flight to Mumbai to pick up a cat for a VVIP. Enjoy our traditional hospitality in the meantime.”

Funds spent for Rajapaksa memorial not indicated in annual reports

DA Rajapaksa Foundation Owes SLRDC Rs 47 Million For Rajapaksa Memorial

 

Camelia Nathaniel-Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Investigations have revealed that the funds spent for the construction of the D.A. Rajapaksa Memorial and Museum by the Sri Lanka Land Reclamation & Development Corporation (SLLRDC) was not indicated in the 2013, 2014 and 2015 annual reports of the Rajapaksa Memorial, Educational, Cultural and Social Services Foundation as current liabilities.

This was revealed in the evidence of the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation Deputy General Manager (Finance) J.A. Pushpakumara, based on the advice of the Attorney General on whether the funds spent on the construction of the D.A.Rajapaksa Memorial and Museum was indicated in the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation annual reports of 2013, 2014 and 2015.

The reason that the funds spent were not indicated in the records was that according to the Board Paper No. HSD-3714 submitted by the then Land Reclamation and Development Corporation Chairman Harshan de Silva, to the Board of Directors dated February 21, 2014, the Board of Directors had agreed to recover the funds spent on the construction of the D.A. Rajapaksa Memorial and Museum through staging of musical shows and other events, it was revealed.

Hence, based on that decision, no specific person or organisation was named for the recovery of the funds spent, and according to the annual reports of 2014 and 2015 of the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation it is indicated as sales expenditure and not indicated as a sum owed to the company, Pushpakumara’s statement revealed.

It was also revealed that the said Board Paper had been approved by the then Board of Directors of the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation and its former Chairman Liyana Arachchige Prasad Harshan de Silva, Gamaethiralalage Badra Undulawathie Kamaladasa, Sudammika Kevinda Attigala, Saman Kumara Abraham Galapatti and Murukku Devage Mahinda Saliya.

Meanwhile, at the time the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation was under the Urban Development Authority and prior to implementation of decisions taken by the director board, it was required to obtain the approval of the Defence Secretary. Accordingly, as per the order of Circular No. MOD/SEC/PA/01/[115], a concise report of the decision taken by the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation board of directors of board paper no. HSD-3714, was handed over to the then Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

His signature on the said document is proof that he had seen the concise report and had deliberately granted approval knowing very well that it was a construction based on his family’s private needs.

However, although it was determined to recover the monies spent on the D.A. Rajapaksa memorial by staging fund raising events, there was no proper plan or mechanism for the recovery of these funds.

On August 04, 2015 subsequent to a request made by the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation General Manager Mallika Senadgeera, a part payment of Rs. 25 million was paid, it was revealed. But by that time the FCID had already commenced investigations and initiated legal action.

It was also revealed that the Rajapaksa Memorial, Educational, Cultural and Social Services Foundation which was established under Parliament Act No.23 of 1998 with the intention of carrying out social service activities.

Its Chairman was MP Chamal Rajapaksa, Deputy Chairmen former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and D.E.W. Gunasekara, Secretary Uthpalawarna Wijesinghe, Treasurer Lalith Chandradasa and other members were Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and several others. Although it was investigated as to whether the Rajapakse Memorial, Educational, Cultural and Social Services Foundation had entered into an agreement with the Land Reclamation and Development Corporation, no information was found regarding such an agreement.

Meanwhile, although it is required that this foundation carries out an audit annually, no such audit was carried out. Therefore, the FCID has also commenced an investigation on how the Rajapaksa Memorial, Educational, Cultural and Social Services Foundation had earned money. 

Violence against women in Britain Legal system needs major overhaul

By Emma Batha-2018-01-30

Violence against women and girls is 'endemic' in Britain and the legal system needs a major overhaul in order to protect them, experts said on Tuesday.

A report by the Fawcett Society, a leading women's rights charity, called for misogyny to be made a hate crime and urged tougher laws around sexual harassment, domestic violence, equal pay and employment rights.

It also called for 'up-skirting,' taking photos surreptitiously up women's skirts, to be made an offence.
The charity commissioned a review of sex discrimination laws amid concerns that protections enshrined in European Union law could be eroded or weakened when Britain leaves the bloc.

Retired High Court Judge Laura Cox, who led the review, said they had received "deeply disturbing" evidence of increasing levels of violence, abuse and harassment against women.The report found half of women had suffered sexual harassment at work and nearly two-thirds in a public place. One in five had experienced sexual assault.

It highlighted evidence of a blame culture with 38 per cent of men saying a woman was totally or partially to blame if she was assaulted after going out at night in a short skirt and getting drunk. A third of women agreed.

The report also called for a review on the admissibility of evidence on a victim's sexual history in rape trials.

"What we see is a deeply misogynistic culture where harassment and abuse are endemic and normalised coupled with a legal system that lets women down because in many cases it doesn't provide access to justice," Fawcett Society Chief Executive Sam Smethers said in a statement.

The report also said progress on closing the pay gap had stalled and a lack of transparency prevented women from challenging unequal pay.

The issue was highlighted this month when the BBC's China correspondent Carrie Gracie quit after revealing that she was earning far less than senior male colleagues.

The experts also recommended extending protection from pregnancy discrimination to six months after maternity leave ends, saying many pregnant women and working mothers were being pressured into leaving their jobs.

Lawmaker Maria Miller, who chairs Parliament's Women and Equalities Committee, said the report showed there was still "significant work to be done" on pay, family-friendly working rights and sexual harassment.

She called for "a revolution in the workplace" to ensure fairness for women, men and their families.
The committee recently launched an inquiry into sexual harassment in public places. 

Slovenia to recognize Palestinian state next month — TV report

Luxembourg, Ireland, Belgium also reportedly gearing up to follow suit, while French is said to be pushing for EU free trade deal with PA

Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar arrives for an EU summit at the Europa building in Brussels on December 14, 2017 (AP Photo/ Olivier Matthys)

By RAPHAEL AHREN and SUE SURKES-21 January 2018

The moves follow US President Donald Trump’s December recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and plan to move the US Embassy to the city from Tel Aviv.

Trump said his declaration reflected reality on the ground, and was not intended to prejudge any future arrangement between Israel and the Palestinians regarding the disputed city, though he later said it had taken Jerusalem off the table. Welcomed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and leaders across most of the Israeli political spectrum, the move caused an uproar throughout the Muslim world and was panned by the United Nations, the European Union, and many European countries.

US President Donald Trump signing a proclamation that the US government will formally recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, at the White House in Washington, DC, December 6, 2017. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via JTA)

Last month, Slovenian Parliament Speaker Milan Brglez told Palestinian Ambassador Salah Abdel-Shafi that Slovenia’s recognition of a Palestinian state was “not in doubt,” but just a question of timing.

Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar said at the time that although all three Slovenian coalition parties had voted in favor of recognition, his country should wait until a group of EU member states decided to act together.

The Slovenian government decided to move ahead on plans to recognize a Palestinian state a week ago, the Channel 10 report said. It said that a vote on recognition was expected to be held by the Slovenian parliament’s foreign affairs committee on January 31, followed by a vote of the full parliament in February.

The Slovenian ambassador in Tel Aviv, Barbara Sušnik, told The Times of Israel that the issue of recognizing Palestinian statehood has been pending in the country’s parliament since 2014, and is only now coming to a vote.

President Reuven Rivlin with the Ambassador of Slovenia, Barbara Susnik, November 2015 (Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

She confirmed that the foreign affairs committee will vote on the matter on January 31. If the committee votes in favor of recognizing Palestine, the issue will be brought to a vote in the full plenary of the Parliament.

As opposed to many other Western democracies, it is Slovenia’s legislative branch, not its executive, which has the last word on foreign policy matters such as recognizing states.

Sušnik said it was difficult to predict how the parliamentarians would vote, but hinted that there was a good chance they would seek to assert the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

“The elected representatives of the people will decide the way they decide. It’s their decision,” she said. “For the people of Slovenia, the principle of self-determination of nations is very important, because that is how Slovenia became independent 26 years ago, when we exercised the right to self-determination. All nations have the right to self-determination.”

Sušnik stressed that a possible recognition of Palestine should not be seen as a move hostile to Israel. “We established friendly relations with Israel more than 25 years ago, and we appreciate them a lot,” she said. “We’re committed to good relations with Israel. Our embassy in Tel Aviv was opened in the summer of 1994, right after diplomatic relations were established. Unfortunately, Israel never opened an embassy in Slovenia.”

The Channel 10 report said that Israel’s Foreign Ministry has been trying to recruit Slovenian lawmakers to oppose the move, although expectations are low that the process can be stopped.

According to the report, Luxembourg’s foreign minister called several days ago for a group of European countries to come together and recognize a Palestinian state, and is reportedly trying to convince France to lead the initiative. Ireland’s foreign minister, who recently visited Israel, conveyed at the time that his country was seriously considering recognizing a state of Palestine, the report said. It also named Ireland and Belgium as countries that could soon recognize Palestinian statehood.

Palestinians protest against the US for withholding $65 million from Palestinian aid programs, in front of the UN Relief and Works Agency offices in the Nusseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, January 17, 2018. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

Channel 10 quoted a senior Israeli official as saying, “Our position is that recognition of a Palestinian state, which is not within the framework of an agreement, harms the chance of achieving peace and even pushes it further away.”

The French newspaper Le Monde, meanwhile, reported on Sunday that France is trying to upgrade the Palestinian Authority’s status at the European Union, stopping short of full recognition of a Palestinian state.

The French are reportedly pushing for an EU free trade agreement with the Palestinians, similar to the one signed with Israel.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas is scheduled to arrive in Brussels on Monday, where he will meet with the foreign ministers of the Union’s 28 countries. The issue of recognition of a Palestinian state is expected to be at the top of the agenda for the talks.

After Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December, the Palestinian leadership declared Washington could no longer fulfill the historic and central role in the peace process it has held for over two decades.

Last week, the Central Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PCC) — the second-highest decision-making body for Palestinians — ratified that the US had “lost its eligibility to function as a mediator and sponsor of the peace process” until it reverses the Jerusalem decision.

President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas delivers a speech at the European Union Parliament in Brussels on June 23, 2016. (AFP PHOTO / JOHN THYS)

Sweden was the first western European country to recognize Palestine, in October 2014.

In December 2014, in a symbolic move not binding on government policy, French lawmakers voted in favor of recognizing Palestine as a state, following similar moves in Britain and Spain, as European countries tried to restart the stalled Middle East peace process. Italy followed suit in 2015.

Palestinian teenager shot dead by Israeli soldiers in West Bank

Laith Abu Naim was shot in the head by Israeli soldiers in village of Al-Mugheer

Laith Abu Naim was killed in the village of Al-Mugheer, north of Ramallah (Screengrab)

Tuesday 30 January 2018 -

Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager on Tuesday in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Health ministry said. 

Laith Abu Naim, 16, was shot in the head as soldiers stormed the village of Al-Mugheer, north of Ramallah, according to a ministry statement. 

Hundreds of residents marched through Al-Mugheer condemning Abu Naim's death and chanting, "We want to live in freedom."

A spokeswoman for the Israeli military said, "Violent riots are taking place in this area and burning tyres and stones were thrown at the soldiers."

She said she was unable to confirm that any Palestinians had been hit by gunfire.

Abu Naim's death comes amid growing tensions after US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of  Israel.

Nineteen Palestinians had been killed since Trump's announcement, with the majority of the deaths taking place during demonstrations by Palestinians.

US Vice President Mike Pence confirmed earlier in January that the United States will move its embassy to Jerusalem before the end of 2019.

The announcement came during an address to the Israeli parliament, which saw Palestinian-Israeli MPs escorted out of the Knesset, after protesting Pence's visit to Jerusale

مسيرة في بلدة المغير شرق رام الله قبل قليل عقب استشهاد الفتى ليث أبو نعيم. pic.twitter.com/6XcCNzy25v

— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) 30 January 2018

✔@qudsn

مسيرة في بلدة المغير شرق رام الله قبل قليل عقب استشهاد الفتى ليث أبو نعيم.

1:18 PM - Jan 30, 2018

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•  88 likes

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"In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States embassy in Jerusalem – and that United States embassy will open before the end of next year," Pence said.

"Jerusalem is Israel’s capital – and, as such, President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem."

Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, denounced Pence's speech as "messianic" and a "gift to extremists".

Jordan's King Abdullah also renewed concerns over the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital, during high-level talks with Pence on Sunday.

Abdullah emphasised to Pence that East Jerusalem had to be the capital of a future Palestinian state and that the two-state solution was the only path to peace between Israel and Palestine.

"The US decision on Jerusalem ... does not come as a result of a comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," the monarch told Pence at the start of the talks in the royal palace in Amman.

Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 war. Pence was in Amman on the second leg of a three-country tour that concluded in Israel.

Youngest children held by Israel jailed for months

Tamara Nassar-29 January 2018

Israel has sentenced two of the youngest Palestinian children in military custody to months in prison.

Abdel Raouf al-Bilawi, 13, from Dheisheh refugee camp in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, was sentenced to four months for throwing stones at occupation forces, the most common charge leveled against Palestinian children in Israeli military courts, according to prisoners rights group Samidoun.

Al-Bilawi was detained by occupation forces in December and his trial was postponed seven times, until he was sentenced on 22 January. He was also fined $100.

Israeli occupation forces have a policy of deliberately maiming and disabling Palestinian youths who resist their frequent invasions of Dheisheh refugee camp. Many others are arrested.

Al-Bilawi is currently thought to be the youngest Palestinian prisoner held by Israel, according to Shehab News Agency.

View image on Twitter

وكالة شهاب

✔@ShehabAgency

#صورة
الاحتلال يؤجل محاكمة الأسير الطفل عبد الرؤوف نور البلعاوي من مخيم الدهيشة قضاء بيت لحم، حتى الـ 22 من الشهر الجاري.
يذكر أن الطفل علقم يعتبر أصغر أسير فلسطيني يقبع داخل سجون #الاحتلال.

2:28 PM - Jan 8, 2018

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In this video, his mother says that Israel does not see her son as a child and treats him like a grown man.

#شاهد.. الطفل عبدالرؤوف البلعاوي من مخيم الدهيشة في بيت لحم، أصغر أسير في معتقلات الاحتلال .. ماذا قالت عائلته؟ pic.twitter.com/zNS5W4Jipz

— Pal.Info.Center (@PalinfoAr) 9 January 2018

Pal.Info.Center

✔@PalinfoAr

#شاهد.. الطفل عبدالرؤوف البلعاوي من مخيم الدهيشة في بيت لحم، أصغر أسير في معتقلات الاحتلال .. ماذا قالت عائلته؟

2:13 AM - Jan 9, 2018

“They are not at all taking into consideration that he’s a child.”

Al-Bilawi was interrogated for hours, shackled and verbally abused until he confessed under pressure, his family told local media.

His older brother Ala al-Bilawi has been jailed by Israel for the last six months.

Kangaroo courts

“Israel has the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world that systematically prosecutes an estimated 500 to 700 children each year in military courts lacking fundamental fair trial rights,” according to Defense for Children International-Palestine.

Israel’s military kangaroo courts have a near-100 percent conviction rate for Palestinians.

There are currently about 350 Palestinian children in Israeli jails.

Youngest female prisoner

Razan Abu Sal, 13, was also sentenced on 16 January to four months in prison and a fine of approximately $700, also allegedly for throwing stones.

Razan, from al-Arroub refugee camp in Hebron, is the youngest Palestinian female prisoner held by Israel.

She was arrested with her sister Roa on 13 January in Hebron. Her sister’s case was delayed by the military court.

Palestinian teenager Muhammad Bilal Tamimi was brought before the Israeli military court on 28 January, but no decision was made to release him from detention, which is in its third week.

His mother, Manal Tamimi, wrote about Muhammad’s condition in a Facebook post. This was the first time his parents were able to see him since he was arrested.

“[He] looks very tired, his face turned to yellow and he lost around seven kilos or more,” she wrote. “He didn’t have enough food or sleep during the past 17 days and he went through so many interrogation sessions days and nights.”

Muhammad, 19, was taken prisoner during a night raid on the village of Nabi Saleh on 11 January.

He is a relative of Palestinian child prisoner Ahed Tamimi.

Seized while getting pizza

Abdul Khalik Burnat, 17, from the Palestinian village of Bilin, was also brought before the Ofer military court on 28 January after some 50 days in prison.

His father Iyad Burnat called it “a long day of deliberate humiliations and insults.”

Writing on Facebook, Iyad described: “A court filled with soldiers wearing military uniforms and a child in a cage, his feet in chains, wearing a brown uniform and a broad smile. A smile that says, I am strong!”

Like with so many other children, occupation forces accuse Abdul Khalik of throwing stones at the army or its fortifications.

His father Iyad is a prominent advocate of unarmed resistance in Bilin, who featured in the award-winning documentary 5 Broken Cameras.

Abdul Khalik was “kidnapped, beaten and detained on the night of 10 December while getting pizza along with his friends Hamzah Al-Khatib and Malik Rahdi,” according to Samidoun.

A year ago, Abdul Khalik was shot in the head with a rubber-coated bullet. Israeli forces also previously detained him in a night raid in March 2017, while he was under treatment for his injuries, Samidoun added.

Abdul Khalik’s next hearing was scheduled for 11 February.

Medical neglect

On 25 January, Israel’s high court denied the appeal of a woman with severe burns.

Israa Jaabis, 32, appealed her 11-year sentence citing her “inability to perform essential functions behind bars and the lack of adequate medical treatment provided to her,” according to Samidoun.

Sixty percent of her body is covered in burns and she has lost eight fingers. Jaabis needs multiple surgeries, suffers intense pain and cannot care for herself.

Jaabis, from occupied East Jerusalem, sustained severe burns and other injuries after a cooking gas canister she was transporting caused a fire in her car in October 2015. She was then accused of attempting to detonate the car when she was hundreds of meters from an Israeli checkpoint.

“The situation was treated as a ‘terror attack’ rather than a medical emergency by the occupation forces on the scene,” Samidoun said.

Her family says Jaabis was moving to a new apartment in East Jerusalem and had been transferring furniture for days, including the gas canister when it exploded.

Jaabis had reportedly been told that she would lose her Jerusalem residency if she did not move back to the city.

She is one of 34 Palestinian women, including eight girls, currently being held in HaSharon prison, and one of almost 60 Palestinian women held by Israel.

Death from cancer

Palestinian prisoner Hussein Husni Atallah, 57, died of cancer on 20 January, after spending more than 20 years behind Israeli bars.

Atallah’s son, Muhammad, told the Ma’an News Agency that the family learned of his death from the Red Cross after a severe deterioration in his health.

An Israel court denied repeated requests from his lawyers to release him, despite medical reports from the Red Cross and the prison doctor attesting to the severity of his illness.

After losing consciousness, Atallah was reportedly transferred from Ramle prison to Israel’s Asaf Harofeh hospital.

The Palestinian Authority’s prisoners commission and the Palestinian Prisoners Club condemned Israel’s refusal to allow Atallah to spend his final days with his family.

Meanwhile, Ayoub al-Asa, 33, from the West Bank city of Bethlehem, has been on hunger strike for approximately 20 days.

Israel transferred him from solitary confinement in Ofer prison to solitary confinement in the Naqab prison on 27 January in retaliation for his fast.

Al-Asa is protesting the extension of his detention without charge or trial since he was arrested in June 2017.