Palestinian‑American 16‑Year‑Old Released After Nine Months in Israeli Detention

Mohammed Ibrahim, a 16-year-old Palestinian‑American from Florida, was released on Thursday after spending nine months in Israeli custody, his family said. He was freed following a guilty plea and received a suspended sentence. Relatives say he was taken straight to hospital for intravenous treatment and blood tests and remains severely underweight, pale and suffering from scabies contracted during detention; they estimate he lost about a quarter of his body weight.

Arrest and charges
Ibrahim was arrested in a predawn raid on his family’s home in the West Bank in February, when he was still 15. Family members say Israeli forces blindfolded and handcuffed him during the operation. Court documents indicate he faced two counts related to throwing objects at moving vehicles.

Family reaction
"Words can’t describe the immense relief we have as a family right now, to have Mohammed in his parents’ arms," said family friend Zeyad Kadur. He added the family had endured a "horrific and endless nightmare" and said they believe the detention was unjustified.

U.S. involvement and advocacy
Because Ibrahim holds U.S. citizenship, the U.S. State Department was involved in the case and assigned a dedicated official to oversee it. More than 100 U.S. human-rights, faith-based and civil-rights organizations had urged his immediate release. Last month, 27 Democratic members of Congress, including Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Chris Van Hollen, wrote to the U.S. Secretary of State expressing "grave concern" about Ibrahim’s treatment and urging action to secure his release.

Conditions in detention
Relatives and advocacy groups reported that Ibrahim suffered significant weight loss and developed scabies while detained. In an interview with a child-rights organization in October, Ibrahim said the food provided was "extremely insufficient," describing breakfast as three small pieces of bread and a spoonful of yogurt, with no fruit and inconsistent evening meals.

Broader context
Child-rights organizations note that many Palestinian minors are processed in Israeli military courts. A 2013 UNICEF report observed that Israel routinely prosecutes children in military courts, and human-rights groups have previously documented hundreds of Palestinian children tried on similar charges. Data from Defense for Children International – Palestine reported that, as of September, some 350 Palestinian children aged 12–17 were in Israeli military detention.

"There are hundreds of children like Mohammed, unjustly trapped in an Israeli military prison," Kadur said. "No family should have to go through what Mohammed just went through."

Mohammed’s family said they had almost no direct contact with him during his detention, receiving updates primarily through U.S. embassy officials. Israel’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.