A leading US Muslim advocacy group has called on the White House and Congress to press for the release of American teenager Abdalkareem Issa Ahmed Safi who has been held in an Israeli prison for nearly four months without charges. The Council on American-Islamic Relations said Israeli authorities should not be allowed to detain US citizens without due process in facilities known for harsh conditions. Its national executive director Nihad Awad stressed that the Trump administration has a duty to protect Americans abroad especially from governments that receive US funding and urged Congress to ensure the State Department secures Safi’s swift safe release.
CAIR and its Texas chapter described Safi a US citizen with Texas ties as being held without criminal charges. American Muslims for Palestine reported that Israeli forces raided his family home in Jalazone north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank overnight in June. The group said he is the third Palestinian American detained by Israel without charge or trial joining Sama Safi and Adam Karakrah. According to independent outlet Zeteo Israeli authorities later issued an administrative detention order based on information not shared with his lawyer or family a practice that permits indefinite holding without trial.
A State Department spokesman confirmed awareness of reports involving an American detained in the West Bank stating the department is monitoring the case and works to arrange medical care proper treatment and consular access when Americans are held abroad while declining further details on privacy grounds.
NEWS DESK
PRESS UPDATE