Gay Paltian Asylum Seeker Behead the Wt Bank

Contents:

• GAY PALTIAN AHMAD ABU MARHIA BEHEAD WT BANK
• EXPLORG GAY PALTE
• SHOCK, QUTNS AFTER GOME KILLG OF GAY PALTIAN
• GAY MOSW MOSW CY GUI
• GAY PALTIAN ASYLUM SEEKER BEHEAD THE WT BANK
• PALTIAN AUTHORY BANS ACTIVI BY GAY RIGHTS GROUP
• GAY PALTIAN BEHEAD IN WT BANK: ISRAELI RIGHTS GROUP

GAY PALTIAN AHMAD ABU MARHIA BEHEAD WT BANK

LGBTQ groups Israel, where Ahmad Abu Marhia was seekg asylum, say he had received threats bee he was gay. Homosexualy is rejected wh the most socially and religly nservative parts of both Paltian and Israeli societi but gay people Israel n eely lead their liv. “Meet me at Arafat Square, ” my gay Paltian iend Najeeb texted me, “I’ll take you to one of the queer fés Ramallah.

Admtedly, I arrived the Wt Bank wh certa expectatns of homophobia, xenophobia, and even vlence.

EXPLORG GAY PALTE

Acrdg to Troy Masters, origally om Nashville and currently livg New York as the -founr and associate publisher of Gay Cy News. Troy reunts a story of g across a small group of gay and l- bian Paltians Ramallah who, “after spottg me as gay, ved me to their table and offered me ffee.

” Many other gay travelers I met the Wt Bank reunted siar stori of hospaly. Gay Perspectiv Palte. Another gay Paltean I met Ramallah, Sam, says that homosexualy is generally not accepted Palte, but there are spac Ramallah where you n “be whatever you want.

SHOCK, QUTNS AFTER GOME KILLG OF GAY PALTIAN

Though there are no laws the Wt Bank that crimalize homo-sexualy, neher are there laws that protect LGBTQ persons om discrimatn. Gay polics Palte are plited by a nvo- luted history of legal s, cludg Ottoman, Brish, Jordanian, Egyptian, and Israeli occupatn.

In Gaza, for example, homosexual acts between men are still illegal unr the Brish Mandate Crimal Co Ordance of 1936.

(For more rmatn on LGBTQ rights Palte, I suggt readg through the publitns of the Paltian gay rights group lled alQaws. Timothy McCarthy, a foundg member of Barack Obama’s Natnal LGBT Learship Council and part of the first LGBT legatn of the US to Israel/Palte told me that “the suatn that Paltians them- selv are ‘by nature’ more homophobic is not te…while there is certaly more progrs to be ma on LGBT issu Palte, this is te of Israel and the Uned Stat as well. I spoke wh several other gay travelers about how safe they felt durg their travels to the Wt Bank.

GAY MOSW MOSW CY GUI

JERUSALEM (AP) — The severed head and pated torso of a 25-year-old Paltian were disvered on the si of a road the occupied Wt Bank, police said Friday, nfirmg gome tails of a killg that shocked Paltian acunts that the victim, Ahmad Abu Murkhiyeh, was a gay man who feared persecutn for his sexualy and had sought asylum Israel two years ago turned the terrible crime to a socially and polilly explosive se. Homosexualy remas eply taboo the Paltian terrori, where tradnal norms play a proment role social and polil life.

LGBTQ anizatns and emergency shelters helpg gay asylum seekers said they knew he was gay and sperate to pe the Paltian terrori, where he was a target. Ra Petrenko, founr of Al Ba Al Mokhtalef, an Israeli gay rights anizatn terg to the Arab muny, said Abu Murkhiyeh’s fear was distct when they met 2020.

“The suatn was horrible for all of them, ” said Ibtisam Mara’ana-Menuh, an Arab member of the Israeli Knset who petned the Supreme Court to grant gay Paltian asylum seekers work equently promot s tolerance on issu of sexual orientatn, spe the rejectn of homosexualy ultra-Orthodox Jewish muni. But Tel Aviv is proud of s reputatn as a top statn for gay and lbian travelers. Paltian Authory police 2019 barred gay and transgenr rights group om holdg events the Wt Bank and threatened to arrt participants.

GAY PALTIAN ASYLUM SEEKER BEHEAD THE WT BANK

Gay people wh Israel’s Arab mory have also faced vlence and ostracism their Bank Paltians like Abu Murkhiyeh have long have crossed to Israel to live openly. Although LGBT Paltians have bee more outspoken recent years, gay rights rema ntroversial nservative, relig Paltian society.

A gay Wt Bank Paltian who ttified before the Knset on Monday scribed how his fay had tried to kill him after they learned of his sexual orientatn. “This is a ser problem our society, ” he said, “and we have not grappled wh the long-entrenched and graed homophobia our society a ser or robt, large-sle manner yet.

PALTIAN AUTHORY BANS ACTIVI BY GAY RIGHTS GROUP

Homosexualy is taboo Arab untri, many of which crimalize . Ahmad, a young gay man, experienced many of the hardships when he fled to Israel after facg vlence and threats of murr om men his fay who disvered his sexual orientatn: “I was sick, and I uldn’t go to the hospal. I was 17, and you uld tell I was gay.

Trapped between homophobia and racism.

GAY PALTIAN BEHEAD IN WT BANK: ISRAELI RIGHTS GROUP

At-risk LGBTQ Paltians are ught between a rock and a hard place — homophobia Paltian society on the one hand, and Israeli racism on the other.

Long known to LGBTQ activists and anizatns, this lk was nfirmed when, 2014, veterans of the Israeli ary telligence un known as 8200 publicly admted that their duti clud llectg rmatn about homosexuals the Wt Bank.

One former soldier said, “If you are a homosexual who knows someone who knows a wanted dividual, Israel will make your life a misery, ” addg that, “In the trag urse, you actually learn and memorize different words for homo Arabic. While Israel’s hasbara mache LGBTQ opprsn the Wt Bank to prent self as an LGBTQ oasis a homophobic sert, ternally, Israel vehemently ni that the PA is persecutg LGBTQ persons or that Israel is any way nnected to . Pkwashg has been a staple of Israeli hasbara activi for years; attempts to distract om the crim of the occupatn by prentg Israel as a liberal, gay-iendly paradise while Arab natns are portrayed as barbaric, vlent, and homophobic.