A court in the UAE sentenced Fida Kiwan, a 43-year-old Haifa resident who was arrested a year ago in the UAE with half a kilogram of cocaine, to death.
"The police there in Dubai abused her and beat her to thank her that the drugs were related to her," Fida's relatives told Israel Today (Tuesday).
"She came to Dubai for two weeks and went to an apartment that has partners, the drugs are not hers and she is not a trader."
The family members also stated that the police told Fida that if they thanked that the drugs were hers, they would deport her from the state and no indictment would be filed against her.
"Asking for help to get it back": Fida Kiwan, Photo: None
Fida's mother adds: "She is an amazing daughter. She always helps everyone and loves everyone. She seeks peace and brotherhood among the people."
She adds that she had one single conversation with Fida.
"For a year Shapida has been detained," the mother added.
"We wanted to do a media campaign but the Foreign Ministry told us it was better to be quiet because it could harm the sentence there. For a year we were smeared and lied to that if we talk about the case, it could hurt her, and in the end we received the bitter news that she was sentenced to death. I paid NIS 200,000. "To the lawyer and they promised me that they would get her out of there, but it did not help anything and today the Foreign Ministry is ignoring us."
Drug Weighing, Illustration, Photo: None
The mother added that "I know there were other people with her, but the victim is our daughter and the other people who were with her have disappeared."
She also noted that Fida is on hunger strike in prison.
According to her friends, it is necessary to check how the drugs got to Fida.
"She is not a drug dealer. She is a successful girl who lives life and has a tidy job. We are sure that the drugs are not related to her but to someone else. We should have checked the source of the drugs and not put such a case on her."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it is familiar with the case and is handling it through the Department for Israelis Abroad in the Consular Division and Israeli missions in the country.
The sentence may be commuted to many years in prison in the Emirates: Dubai, Archive, Photo: Reuters
As mentioned, Fida is a resident of Haifa, who moved to the Emirates a year ago and was arrested shortly afterwards on suspicion of drug trafficking.
During the period, she was accompanied by the Israeli consular echelon, and a family member even visited her.
The court that sentenced the death sentence is considered a preliminary instance, and therefore an appeal is expected.
In the Emirates it is not customary to execute and therefore the assessment that the sentence will eventually be commuted to a prison sentence of many years.
In recent years, Fida has been involved in the field of graphics and lives between Haifa and Ramallah.
She was a well-known figure in Haifa.
Lawyer Tami Ullman, who represents the family, told Israel Today: "We will collect the evidence, turn to the local authorities and do everything we can to help her within the law. We have been representing her since she received her sentence."
Participated in the preparation of the article:
Ariel Kahana.
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