Israel Detains 20-Year-Old Palestinian American Student Without Charge for Nearly 2 Weeks
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 13
Israel Detains 20-Year-Old Palestinian American Student Without Charge for Nearly 2 Weeks
2 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 13
Summary
Nearly two weeks after a 2 June pre-dawn raid, Israeli forces are still holding 20-year-old Palestinian American student Sama Safi without charge at a Jerusalem detention and interrogation center.
Israeli military officials said Safi and three other women were arrested for promoting hostile terrorist activity, while her lawyer said the case appears tied to names allegedly extracted from other detained students linked to the Qutub campus group.
Safi’s family said her chronic autoinflammatory disease requires daily medication and treatment abroad, and that detention authorities are giving her some medicine but not the right type or enough of it.
US embassy staff visited Safi this week, and senators Peter Welch, Jeff Merkley, Chris Van Hollen and Representative Ayanna Pressley have called for her release ahead of a hearing scheduled for Sunday.
Her lawyer said conditions for Palestinians held on security allegations have worsened since 7 October 2023, amid documented abuse in Israeli detention and broader use of charge-free administrative detention.
Held without charge on terror allegations, what evidence is Israel withholding in the case of a detained American student?
Why do US officials and her family give conflicting reports on medical care for an American student detained in Israel?
Detention of Sama Safi and Over 23,000 Palestinians Since Gaza War: Human Rights, US Response, and Systemic Abuses in Israeli Prisons
Overview
Sama Safi, a 20-year-old student from Birzeit University, was detained with three other female students near Ramallah, reflecting a wider pattern of intensified arrests of university students by Israeli authorities since the Gaza war began in October 2023. Advocacy groups are urging Congress to demand her release, as her case highlights growing concerns for student welfare amid a surge of detentions—about 23,000 Palestinians have been detained in the occupied territory during this period. The rising number of women in Israeli jails, including students like Safi, underscores the broader impact of these policies on Palestinian society.