Accountability sought for Palestinian-American boy’s detention in Israel
Letter concerns Ibrahim, a Florida resident, who was 15 when Israeli forces arrested him during West Bank raid
WASHINGTON, United States (MNTV) – Fifteen U.S. lawmakers have written to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, demanding information on actions taken regarding the mistreatment of Palestinian-American teenager Mohammed Ibrahim, detained in Israel for nine months.
The letter, led by Senator Peter Welch and first reported by the Guardian, concerns Ibrahim, a Florida resident who was 15 when Israeli forces arrested him during a West Bank raid in February 2025.
He was charged with throwing objects at moving vehicles and released on 27 November after a guilty plea and suspended sentence, immediately taken to hospital.
At the time of his release, Ibrahim was severely underweight, having lost roughly a third of his body weight, and had suffered a scabies infection during detention, according to U.S. State Department updates shared with his family.
Ibrahim told family and U.S. consular officers that he and other Palestinian minors were beaten, threatened, pepper-sprayed, and denied adequate food and medical care.
In interviews with Defense for Children International – Palestine, Ibrahim described receiving only three small pieces of bread and a spoonful of yogurt for breakfast, with no dinner.
Lawmakers wrote in their 16 February letter: “While such abuses are never permissible, we are especially concerned that cases involving US citizens in the West Bank be thoroughly investigated and that those responsible are brought to justice.”
The letter asks Rubio whether officials have met with Ibrahim, whether Washington requested an impartial investigation by Israel, and whether any personnel were held accountable.
The letter follows an earlier, unsatisfactory response from the State Department in December.
The case gained public attention after the Guardian’s July 2025 report.
Over 100 U.S. organizations had called for Ibrahim’s release, leading the State Department to assign a dedicated case officer in September.
Signatories of the letter include Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Ron Wyden, Chris Van Hollen, Jeffrey Merkley, and Brian Schatz, along with House members Rashida Tlaib, Jerry Nadler, Jim McGovern, and Maxwell Frost.
The lawmakers also raised the death of Walid Ahmad, 17, who shared Ibrahim’s cell and was never charged. An autopsy indicated prolonged malnutrition, untreated colitis, injuries consistent with trauma, and scabies.
“This type of abuse, common in the West Bank and Israeli prison facilities, must stop,” the letter stated. The State Department did not immediately comment.
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