Israeli police deny summoning 4-year-old Palestinian boy after social media uproar
Mohammad Elayyan
Yumna Patel writes in Mondoweiss
Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem caused a social media storm on Tuesday when they posted photos of a 4-year-old Palestinian boy being taken to an Israeli police station for interrogation, escorted by his family and locals from his hometown of al-Issawiya.
The boy, identified by local media as Mohammad Elayyan, was allegedly summoned by Israeli police along with his father for questioning in regards to the boy’s participation in stone-throwing at police vehicles during a raid on the town.
Linah al-Saafin, a producer for Al Jazeera, said on Twitter that Israeli forces raided the boy’s house the night before in an attempt to detain him, but the family stepped in and prevented the arrest.
“That is a sign of the failure of the occupation state”, Mohammad Abu Hummus, a member of the local council in al-Issawiya, told the Quds News Network. “The children of al-Issawiya are being chased like grown-ups,” he said.