Gazan prisoners’ wives pregnant

Rafaat Hamdouna, director of the Centre for Prisoners Studies in Gaza, announced that six Gazan women have become pregnant using sperm smuggled from Israeli jails. Tamer al-Zaanin, a 28-year-old Gazan serving a 12-year sentence, said a fertility doctor confirmed his wife’s pregnancy two weeks after his sperm was smuggled out of jail. Al-Zaanin’s wife said she was “extremely happy.” She added that her husband was imprisoned a mere three months after their marriage, when Israeli forces invaded Beit Hanoun in November 2006. Sperm smuggling operations are incredibly complex, and remain impenetrable to Israeli authorities. The Palestinian Supreme Fatwa Council has approved artificial insemination for the wives of Palestinians in Israeli jails. Witnesses are required to testify that the sperm belongs to a women’s husband, and both sets of grandparents must recognise the resulting child’s legitimacy.