The Spanish supporter was sentenced to thirteen months in prison for belonging to the Palestinian NGO Health Work Committees, considered a terrorist organization by the Hebrew Government
The Spanish aid worker Juana Ruiz, arrested by Israel in the West Bank in April last year, will be released this Tuesday, as announced by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, EU and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares. His Israeli counterpart, Yair Lapid, has been commissioned to inform him of the release of the Spanish woman, sentenced to thirteen months in prison for working for an illegal organization and for having introduced money with false pretenses into the West Bank, as reported in his Twitter.
“I thank Israeli Minister Yair Lapid for his call confirming the release tomorrow of the Spanish aid worker Juana Ruiz,” said Albares, after the Parole Board gave the go-ahead for this step last week. The minister also took the opportunity to thank “the services of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that have worked to provide consular assistance throughout these months” to the aid worker.
After the decision of the penitentiary authorities, there was still the possibility that the Prosecutor’s Office appealed the decision, which has not finally occurred, according to the decision that Ruiz be released this Tuesday.
I thank the Israeli minister @yairlapid your call confirming the release tomorrow of the Spanish aid worker Juana Ruiz.
I also want to thank the services of @MAECgob who have worked to provide consular assistance throughout these months. pic.twitter.com/nolPRfBFi8
José Manuel Albares (@jmalbares) February 7, 2022
The Spanish woman, project coordinator at the Palestinian NGO Health Work Committees (HWC) -an organization considered illegal by Israel-, was arrested in April 2021 at her home in Beit Sahur, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Defense and prosecution reached an agreement in November by which the aid worker was sentenced to 13 months in prison. There were initially five charges against her, three in connection with her work at HWC, as well as having smuggled money into the Palestinian territories and received funds under false pretenses. Under the agreement with the prosecutor, only two of them remained, for working for an illegal organization and for having introduced money under false pretenses.
Israeli authorities link HWC to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist organization, and claim that the NGO Ruiz worked for diverts funds to finance the terrorist activities of this group. In addition, the agreement with the accusation served as an argument for the Israeli government to reaffirm its complaint that another six NGOs banned in 2021 finance the activities of the FPLF, which both the EU and the United States consider a terrorist organization.
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