In an Israeli invasion of the city of Qalqilia Thursday, troops raided the office of the Union of Disabled Palestinians in the West Bank city.
The soldiers ransacked the office, stealing documents, audio tapes, photographs and equipment. They damaged the office and equipment inside, according to local reports.
The Union of Disabled Palestinians is an organization that was established by disabled individuals in order to educate the Palestinian public about the needs and rights of people with disabilities, as well as to lobby the Palestinian Authority to increase and improve accessibility for people with disabilities throughout Palestine.
The group is in no way a political or resistance organization, and the leaders of the Union expressed their outrage that the Israeli military would target their organization. They issued an appeal to international organizations, nations and other bodies to chastise Israel for this blatant attack on the human rights of Palestinians.
The Israeli military gave no explanation for the raid, but leaders of the organization stated that they believe it was simply part of the Israeli policy of undermining the Palestinian civil society and infrastructure.
Source: IMEMC
