Circus performers around the world are mobilising in support of a Palestinian clown held by Israel without trial for more than three months on unspecified grounds. They are showing solidarity with red noses and fluorescent wigs in Europe and with a colourful caravan outside an Israeli prison.
The Israeli army does not say why Abu Sakha is held in "administrative detention", the controversial measure under which a person can be jailed without trial for periods of six months, renewable indefinitely. Amnesty International has said Israel believes him to be a member of the leftist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which is considered a militant movement by Israel due to its armed wing.
The Palestinian Performing Arts Network (PPAN) said it was "deeply concerned" about the detention of Abu Sakha, who since 2008 has been part of the Palestinian Circus School in the West Bank village of Bir Zeit, first as a student and later as a clown and teacher. Hendelman knows Abu Sakha well and has asked prison authorities to allow him to receive circus equipment.
Abu Sakha's mother Raja, who has only been able to visit him twice since his arrest on December 14, quotes him as saying that he practises his skills "to forget the prison and imagine that he is free and outside the walls." Raja is moved by the wave of sympathy from abroad.
On the Facebook page of the Palestinian Circus School there is a string of posts from supporters in New York, Rio de Janeiro and Copenhagen, among others. There is a video clip of costumed dancers in London, and an assortment of photos from around the world featuring red-nosed protesters. About 700 Palestinians are in Israeli jails under administrative detention, which is criticised by Palestinians, human rights groups and the international community. Israel defends it as a tool to allow authorities to hold suspects while continuing to gather evidence, with the aim of preventing attacks and keeping sensitive information secret. One Israeli Jew has been held under the measure for seven months on suspicion of being a leader of a group of extremists targeting Palestinians and Christians in hate crimes.
When freedom may become reality is not known. The appeal was heard behind closed doors and Abu Sakha's lawyer was not allowed to see his arrest file. For now the Bir Zeit circus school must adapt to Abu Sakha's absence, and his colleagues say that the show will go on. Without knowing for how long, they are replacing the act of the man they say has "the gift of putting a smile on every face".
