US Citizens Unlawfully Detained by Israel Deported to US

Palestine solidarity activists Irene Cho and Trudi Frost have been deported by Israel and arrived at JFK Airport on Friday, December 19.

[New York, NY]: Irene Cho and Trudi Frost, two U.S. citizens unlawfully detained by Israel on December 12, have been deported back to the United States and are reportedly in good health.

Cho and Frost were arrested by Israeli forces while providing a protective presence to the Abu Hamam family in Al Mughayyir, near Ramallah in the West Bank. The Abu Hamam family has faced relentless violence at the hands of Israeli settlers and armed forces in recent weeks. According to Cho, Israeli soldiers targeted her after she refused to leave a pregnant Palestinian woman’s side. 

Israeli officials claim the arrests were made because Frost and Cho were in violation of a military order closing the area. However, Cho and Frost contend that the Abu Hamam residence was not under an active military closure order at the time.

Israeli judges declined to review the military order or the legality of the arrests. Israeli officials reportedly obstructed Cho and Frost from communicating with their lawyers on multiple occasions, and even sought to prevent their lawyer from attending a hearing.

In the wake of Cho and Frost’s unlawful arrests, people across the U.S. sent more than 3,000 letters calling for action by the U.S. Embassy in defense of the two activists’ rights. Despite these appeals, the Embassy did not send any personnel to any of Cho or Frost’s hearings. Cho’s family reported that their attempts to request information about their daughter’s condition from the embassy were denied.

In a written statement, the Cho family said, “We fully support Irene’s right to speak and act according to her conscience. We are proud of her commitment to protect vulnerable people during the illegal land grab. At the same time, we want to be honest. As her family, we were deeply afraid. We hope that our child, or anyone else’s children, whether American or Palestinian, will never again be placed in such a dangerous situation. We also hope there will be more consideration and reflection regarding the safety of brave people like Irene. We are deeply grateful to the legal team and to members of the community who worked night and day to secure her release during this rapidly changing and frightening situation.”

Miyeon Jang of Nodutdol for Korean Community Development said, “Israel repeatedly denied due process and violated the law in its treatment of Irene and Trudi. This is just a glimpse of how the Israeli government routinely abuses the Palestinian people. The lack of meaningful and swift action by the U.S. Embassy also clearly demonstrates that Israel’s impunity could not exist without American silence. While Irene and Trudi responsibly raised their voices for justice for the Palestinian people, the U.S. government turned its back on them, just as they have done to the Palestinians.”

Alon Sapir, the Israeli attorney representing Cho and Frost, said, “Israel decided to deport Irene and Trudi from the country on the basis of erroneous information provided by the police. Since they did not violate a closed military zone order as claimed, the deportation decision too must be annulled. The decision to deport them is motivated by improper political considerations, attempting to silence international criticism of Israel.”

Ysabella Titi of Palestinian Youth Movement said, “American citizens Trudi and Irene were violently detained by Israel and deported for simply standing in solidarity with Palestinians facing imminent displacement and Zionist terror in the West Bank. Bloodthirsty Zionist settlers abetted and armed by the occupation government are attacking all Palestinian life in the West Bank in an attempt to expand Israel’s occupation. We remain committed to ending the occupation and we stand with Trudi, Irene, and the international community of activists who have sacrificed lives of comfort in solidarity with the Palestinian cause.”

Layan Fuleihan of Shut It Down for Palestine Coalition said, “The violation of Irene and Trudi’s rights is both a grave injustice and a reflection of Israel’s routine disregard for international law and human rights, including its abuse of the more than 10,000 illegally detained Palestinian prisoners who are subjected to brutal treatment and torture at the hands of the Israeli authorities. Our solidarity must extend to all Palestinian prisoners. ”

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Nodutdol for Korean Community Development is an organization of diasporic Koreans and comrades organizing for a world free of imperialism, and for Korea’s re/unification and national liberation. 

 

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