US lawmakers urge Trump team to free of American student held by Israel

More than 40 members of the United States Congress have penned a letter to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on him to push for the release of Sama Safi, a 20-year-old US citizen who has been detained by the Israeli military since June.

The legislators warned on Tuesday that the Palestinian American student’s health is deteriorating “under appalling conditions” in Israeli custody.

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“Every day that Sama remains wrongfully detained in these inhumane conditions, she is at greater risk of irreversible and life-threatening repercussions,” the lawmakers, led by Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, wrote to Rubio.

“Her life is at risk on your watch. We urge you to act swiftly and use every tool at your disposal to secure the immediate release of Sama Safi so that she can receive the medical care she urgently needs and return to her family, her studies, and the life and freedom that every 20-year-old deserves.”

Six US senators – including Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and Chris Van Hollen – signed on to the letter alongside dozens of members of the House of Representatives.

Israeli forces abducted Safi, who was attending Birzeit University, from her home in the occupied West Bank in a predawn raid nearly three months ago, and they have been holding her without charge.

Safi was one of four young women who were detained as part of an Israeli crackdown on anti-occupation activism in June.

Abuse in Israeli jails

Israel has received about $25bn in US military aid since the start of the genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023.

Over the past years, Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed several US citizens, including Sayfollah Musallet, who was beaten to death in a settler attack last year.

In February, Israeli settlers also fatally shot 19-year-old American citizen Nasrallah Abu Siyam. In 2024, the Israeli military killed Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a US activist from Seattle.

None of the incidents have resulted in criminal charges against the perpetrators.

Israel detained American teenager Mohammed Ibrahim for nine months last year and only released him after an outcry from US lawmakers, as his family warned that the boy may die from malnutrition and mistreatment in Israeli custody.

Rights groups have documented horrific and widespread abuses against Palestinian detainees by Israel, including sexual violence.

“Emergency measures introduced after 7 October 2023 exposed Palestinian detainees to torture, potentially unlawful deaths, incommunicado detention, and degrading conditions,” Alice Jill Edwards, the United Nations special rapporteur on torture, said in a report in May.

In their letter to Rubio, the US lawmakers underscored that Safi suffers from a chronic medical condition known as Familial Mediterranean Fever, a genetic disorder that causes fevers and inflammation, but she has not had regular access to her medication.

The Palestinian American detainee has also been moved across several facilities.

“She describes being subjected to repeated verbal abuse and being placed in painful stress positions, as well as the presence of rapidly spreading infectious skin disease, rats, and mattresses reeking of feces,” the letter said.

Trump administration ‘aware’ of the case

The State Department said it does not comment on congressional correspondence, and it declined to comment on the specifics of Safi’s case, citing privacy concerns.

A State Department spokesperson told Al Jazeera that the administration of President Donald Trump “has no higher priority than the safety and security” of US citizens.

“We are aware of reports of an American detained in the West Bank,” the spokesperson said. “The Trump Administration takes its commitment to assist Americans abroad seriously and we are tracking the situation. When  Americans are detained abroad, the Department advocates for their access to adequate medical care, proper treatment, and regular consular visits.”

Raed Jarrar, advocacy director at the US-based rights group DAWN, suggested Safi’s detention should trigger suspending American military aid to Israel under Washington’s regulations, including the Leahy Law.

“Sama Safi is an American citizen. Her own government has abandoned her,” he told Al Jazeera. “The State Department’s job is to fight for her release, and it is refusing to do that job. US law demands more than advocacy. Under the Foreign Assistance Act and the Leahy Law, prolonged detention without charge is a gross violation of human rights, and Washington must cut all military aid to the Israeli units responsible for holding her.”

The Israeli government did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment by the time of publication.

Earlier this month, the Israeli military told Florida radio station WMNF that it detained four “female suspects” in the West Bank “after promoting hostile terrorist activity and additional terrorist-related activities”.