Sama Safi
WHAT HAPPENED
Sama Safi, a 20-year-old Palestinian-American honors psychology student at Birzeit University, was seized from her family's home in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank at about 3 a.m. on June 2, 2026, when roughly ten Israeli soldiers raided the residence and took her into custody. She told the soldiers she was a U.S. citizen, but they ignored her, and she was held for weeks without charge at Ofer military prison. An Israeli military spokesperson told The Guardian that Safi and three other female students were arrested for "promoting hostile terrorist activity," alleging ties to a Birzeit student group linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine; Safi denies any involvement. She suffers from familial Mediterranean fever, a chronic autoinflammatory disease requiring daily medication, and lawmakers including Senators Chris Van Hollen and Jeff Merkley warned her health was at risk and demanded her release.
TESTIMONY
“Her detention is unacceptable and falls in line with a disturbing pattern of mistreatment of American citizens by the Netanyahu government.” — Sen. Chris Van Hollen
SOURCES
DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR
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