After about nine months in an Israeli prison, a Palestinian-American teen from Palm Bay, Florida was released on Thanksgiving Day.
Mohammed Zahar Ibrahim, 16, was accused of throwing rocks at Israeli settlers and had been held without trial since February, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said. While in prison, he faced starvation, torture and abuse, CAIR said in a Nov. 27 statement, calling on the U.S. government to "hold Israeli authorities accountable."
"(Mohammed's) homecoming is a blessing, but it does not erase the torture and suffering he endured," said CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw in a statement sent to media. "The U.S. government has a responsibility to investigate Israel’s abuse of an American citizen and ensure that no other child — American or Palestinian — is subjected to the same treatment."
On Thanksgiving Day, Mohammed was released from Ofer Prison in the West Bank, according to CAIR-Florida. Videos posted to Instagram show him embracing his father on a sidewalk after his release. His family members, who are Palestinian, split their time between Palm Bay and a home in Silwad, an Arab village in the West Bank, according to relatives.
Mohammed was initially arrested in February, when Hiba Rahim, deputy executive director of CAIR-Florida, said he was "snatched from his home at 3 a.m."
