On the 4th of April 2019, HE Maj. Gen. Dr. Tawfiq Tirawi, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Al-Istiqlal University inaugurated a photo exhibition entitled "Family visits", in the presence of Prof. Dr. Saleh Abu Osbaa, the President of the University, Dr. Rajaa Sweidan, his deputy for Administrative and Financial Affairs, the deans of the faculties and a delegation from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the occupied Palestinian territories, represented by Ms. Rima Kamal, the Director of the Department of Public Information and Media, Mr. Fahed Wahba, the Media Spokesperson of the Red Cross Committee in the northern West Bank, Ms. Suha Musleh, the Director of the International Committee Office in Ramallah, Mr. Mosaab Zafer, Responsible for the Committee in Jericho, Ms. Yousra Al-Sweiti, the Representative of the Governor of Jericho and the Jordan Valley and a number of representatives of the security and civil institutions.
HE Maj. Gen. Dr. Tirawi stressed the mission of the University which is honoring the prisoners and their families on the day of the Palestinian prisoner, saying that this exhibition displays the suffering of the prisoners' families, greeting the heroic prisoners inside the Israeli jails, mentioning that the freedom is very close and the occupation will end soon.
In a related context, Prof. Dr. Abu Osbaa stressed the importance of the prisoners’ issue in all fields and forums until having their freedom and stopping the suffering of their families. Also, he said that every picture inside" Family Visits" exhibition embodies a story of a long suffering and Al-Istiqlal University always stands by its responsibility in showing the fact, thanking the ICRC delegation in Palestine for organizing the exhibition.
Moreover, Ms. Kamal, the Director of the Department of Public Information and Media, talked about the importance of holding the photo exhibition at Al-Istiqlal University, which stemmed from the Red Cross sensing of the various human feelings about the prisoners and their families, especially that this event indicated the importance of the family visits which is considered as the lifeblood for the prisoners. Also, it has conveyed the suffering and the humanitarian side of the visits since 50 years, although it is the responsibility of the Israeli occupation authority.
For his part, Mr. Wahaba, the media spokesman of the Red Cross Committee in the northern West Bank, said that the name of the exhibition represents the visits of the Palestinian families to the prisoners in the Israeli jails through the Red Cross, which carries out 400 visits a year with a total of 3.5 million visits since 1968, and prisoners exchanged around (16,000) letters with their families, praising the cooperation with Al-Istiqlal University in holding this exhibition.
Finally, the exhibition was organized by the Department of Media and Public Relations at Al-Istiqlal University and sponsored by the International Red Cross committee. The exhibition will receive visitors from the University and the community on Tuesday 16.04.2019 from 9 am to 2 pm.