U.S. Student Detained in Israel for Alleged Boycott Support
The Associated Press’s Isabel Debre reports, “In a groundbreaking case, Israel has detained an American graduate student at its international airport for the past week, accusing her of supporting a Palestinian-led boycott campaign against the Jewish state.” Lara Alqasem, a 22-year-old U.S. citizen and former president of the University of Florida chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, has been in custody since last Tuesday after she appealed an order to be deported. Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Gilad Erdan said, “Lara served as president of a chapter of one of the most extreme and hate-filled anti-Israel BDS groups in the U.S. Israel will not allow entry to those who work to harm the country, whatever their excuse.”