OH MOTHER THE SOLDIER IS BETWEEN YOU AND ME
By Hafez Omar
A mother holds a portrait of her imprisoned son. The act is a familiar one throughout the MENA region, as it is common practice for family members engaged in funeral processions, protests, or sit-ins to carry photos of loved ones whom have been killed, arrested, or forcibly disappeared. Written at the bottom of the illustration—and separated by a strand of barbed wire—is the English title in Arabic. The image in the frame that the mother holds is actually an internationally recognized design that the artist released in 2012 to raise awareness of the countless Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention whom, at the time, had organized a mass hunger strike in protest of inhumane conditions and non-existent fair trial guarantees. Appearing on the man’s prison uniform is the Hebrew word "SHABAS"—the acronym for the Israeli Prison Service.
The above design was created to commemorate Palestinian Prisoners' Day, which occurs annually on April 17 as a sign of solidarity with Palestinians detained in Israeli military custody. Instituted by the Palestinian National Council in 1974, Palestinian Prisoners' Day aims to remind the public of the systemic human rights abuses—including ill-treatment, torture, medical neglect, and military court sentencing—that are part and parcel of the arbitrary arrest and detention to which Palestinians are routinely subjected.