{"id":4425,"date":"2026-06-13T11:57:20","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T11:57:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/06\/13\/palestinian-american-woman-held-without-charge-by-israeli-military\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T11:57:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T11:57:20","slug":"palestinian-american-woman-held-without-charge-by-israeli-military","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=4425","title":{"rendered":"Palestinian American woman held without charge by Israeli military"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1vsw7yz\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"fffdf1f0-3bbc-45b1-b706-2449b17de602\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A young woman in a white sweater smiling in a park. \" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/d5a0c2a6591046366c2fc119b18aa82d30cbb567\/0_222_1200_960\/master\/1200.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"372\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Sama Safi.<\/span> Photograph: Courtesy of the family of Sama Safi<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"fffdf1f0-3bbc-45b1-b706-2449b17de602\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Sama Safi.<\/span> Photograph: Courtesy of the family of Sama Safi<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-shrpec\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1jwoxwb\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">Palestinian American woman held without charge by Israeli military<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-m5tuef\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Soldiers arrested university student Sama Safi, 20, along with members of Palestinian women\u2019s national soccer team<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-l3z1yk\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-6d4g12\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">A 20-year-old Palestinian American woman has been held in Israeli military detention for nearly two weeks after Israeli soldiers stormed her family home in a pre-dawn raid on 2 June.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Sama Safi, a psychology student at Birzeit University in the occupied West Bank, has not been charged with any crimes. A spokesperson for the Israeli military said she and three other women detained around the same time were arrested \u201cafter promoting hostile terrorist activity and additional terrorist-related activities\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Several US legislators have called for Safi\u2019s release and her family has warned that she has a chronic medical condition that requires regular treatment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">One of the other detained Birzeit University students is a member of the Palestinian women\u2019s national soccer team; another player from the team was also detained before being released earlier this week. The four students are being held at an Israeli detention and interrogation center in Jerusalem notorious for its record of abuse.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Safi\u2019s attorney, the Israeli human rights lawyer Lea Tsemel, said that the students appeared to have been targeted after two other students \u2013 who were themselves detained at the time \u2013 provided the Israeli military with dozens of names of people allegedly involved in an activist student organization called Qutub. Israel says the group is affiliated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/palestinian-territories\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Palestine<\/a> (PFLP), which it has designated a terror organization.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Tsemel says her client denies being involved with the student group \u2013 but also says the group itself is not illegal. \u201cI don\u2019t know how this information was extorted from them, probably by force,\u201d Tsemel said of the students who allegedly provided the names. \u201cIt\u2019s nonsense.\u201d Her next hearing is scheduled for Sunday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Tsemel visited Safi in detention this week, where she said she found her in relatively good spirits because \u201cshe knows she didn\u2019t do anything\u201d. But she noted that the treatment of Palestinians held over allegations that they pose a security threat \u2013including thousands who are held with no charges under so-called \u201cadministrative detention\u201d \u2013 has grown harsher since 7 October 2023. Journalists and human rights groups have documented widespread abuses of Palestinians in Israeli detention, including sexual abuse and beatings.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Safi grew up in Palestine but frequently visited her extended family in Florida, where her mother grew up. Relatives said she suffers from a chronic autoinflammatory disease that can cause debilitating fevers and pain and she had only recently begun to regain her health after being bedridden for months thanks to daily medication and regular treatment abroad. Her family said that she was receiving some medication in detention, but not enough and not the right kind to properly treat her condition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Earlier this week, a representative of the US embassy in Jerusalem visited Safi in detention where, he also told the family, she appeared to be \u201cin good spirits\u201d. He reported that she was receiving \u201csufficient food\u201d though she described it as \u201cprison food\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">A spokesperson for the US state department declined to comment on Safi\u2019s case, citing privacy considerations, but said that \u201cthe Trump Administration takes its commitment to assist Americans abroad seriously and we are monitoring the situation\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cWhen Americans are detained abroad, the Department advocates for their access to adequate medical care and seeks consular access as quickly as possible,\u201d the spokesperson added. Israel\u2019s ministry of foreign affairs did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Selma Farsakh Ulm, Safi\u2019s cousin in the US, has mobilized friends in the campus Palestine solidarity movement to advocate for Safi.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"b38a997b-7d7e-4523-a562-901fa2536adb\" data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.ImageBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-173mewl\">\n<div id=\"img-2\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Two young women with long brown hair taking a selfie from above.\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/b58ec6b7deff003e49639cc51593cd1a02a5492e\/0_0_1600_1200\/master\/1600.jpg?width=445&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"445\" height=\"333.75\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><a href=\"#img-2\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"b38a997b-7d7e-4523-a562-901fa2536adb\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-fd61eq\"><span class=\"dcr-1inf02i\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Selma Farsakh Ulm (left) and Sama Safi.<\/span> Photograph: Courtesy of the family of Sama Safi<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Her effort drew swift responses from the senators <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SenPeterWelch\/status\/2062899189575479558\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Peter Welch<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/SenJeffMerkley\/status\/2063008006422593642?s=20\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Jeff Merkley<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ChrisVanHollen\/status\/2062259354170966284\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Chris Van Hollen<\/a>, as well as the representative <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RepPressley\/status\/2063035279955329093\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Ayanna Pressley<\/a>. All of them had also spoken out on behalf of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2025\/nov\/27\/mohammed-ibrahim-palestine-israel\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Mohammed Ibrahim<\/a>, a 15-year-old Palestinian American boy who was detained by the Israeli military over allegations that he had thrown rocks. Ibrahim was freed last November after nine months of detention and a sustained campaign by US lawmakers who advocated for his release.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Farsakh Ulm said that while she hoped the fact that her cousin is a US citizen would help pressure the Israeli government to release her, her case was no different from that of thousands of Palestinian prisoners and detainees.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cWhat Sama is experiencing is also being experienced by many, many other people,\u201d she said. \u201cBut calling attention to her case can also educate others about what other people are experiencing who are not American citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1xavc9x\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US news<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/world\/israel\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Israel<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/world\/palestinian-territories\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Palestine<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Palestinian%20American%20woman%20held%20without%20charge%20by%20Israeli%20military&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/13\/palestinian-held-sama-safi-israeli-military?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fjun%2F13%2Fpalestinian-held-sama-safi-israeli-military&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/jun\/13\/palestinian-held-sama-safi-israeli-military\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1el9k3p\"><span class=\"dcr-1vetsv0\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sama Safi. Photograph: Courtesy of the family of Sama Safi View image in fullscreen Sama Safi. Photograph: Courtesy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":4427,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}