Ramallah, Palestinian Territories - Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused the Palestinian security forces of arresting or questioning West Bank students over their political opinions, saying several had been mistreated.
"It is deeply worrying that students are being held by Palestinian forces for no apparent reason other than their connection to Hamas or their opinions," said Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW's Middle East and North Africa director.
"Palestinians should be able to express critical political opinions without being arrested or beaten," she said a statement.
Citing prisoner rights group Addameer, HRW said 25 students had been arrested in the wake of the annual student council vote at Birzeit University near Ramallah on April 22.
The vote, which takes place at universities across the West Bank, pits Fatah-supporting students against those backing the rival Islamist Hamas movement, with the poll in Birzeit won by Hamas.
In the West Bank, Fatah is the dominant political power, while Hamas's political power base is in the Gaza Strip.
Three days after the vote, the security forces arrested Jihad Salim, a representative of a Hamas-affiliated student group at Birzeit, and held him for about 24 hours, during which time he was beaten while being questioned about the elections.
AFP
