A Palestinian-American teenager is expected to appear in court in Israel later this week after nine months in detention without being charged.
Mohammed Ibrahim, who is 16 and lives in Florida, was arrested in February while on holiday in the Israeli-occupied West Bank for allegedly throwing stones at Jewish settlers, something he denies.
Last month, 27 Democratic US Senators and House members sent a letter to the US State Department, urging the Trump administration to do more to pressure Israel to release him.
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Mohammed had committed a serious potentially deadly crime and that the court was proceeding under due process.
The teenager's family disagrees. You can ask anybody you know, he's a real sweet boy, into his sports and his PlayStation and school, his father, Zahar Ibrahim, tells me before wiping a tear from his eye.
Mohammed was arrested in a raid on his family's holiday home in the Palestinian village of al-Mazraa al-Sharqiya in the middle of the night by Israeli soldiers. He was 15 years old at the time.
Mr. Ibrahim has not seen or spoken to Mohammed since February. He's just a regular fun kid that loves and respects anybody, Mr. Ibrahim tells me from the holiday home.
Unable to communicate with his son for nine months, Mr. Ibrahim has only heard accounts of his detention through court documents, claiming his son was forced to confess due to mistreatment.
According to the court documents he saw, Mohammed woke up surrounded by Israeli soldiers. They tied him up and blindfolded him, and they threw him on the floor of the jeep and took him to wherever they took him. Mr. Ibrahim argues his son confessed to throwing stones only after being beaten by soldiers.
The Israeli prime minister's office has not responded to a request for comment on Mohammed's situation or the allegations of abuse during detention.
The US embassy assigned a case worker who has visited Mohammed in prison. Mr. Ibrahim claims they informed him that his son had lost significant weight and was in poor health.
Mr. Ibrahim conveyed a message for President Donald Trump, urging action on behalf of his son, an American citizen. Do what you said from day one. You know America first. He's American, and he's a citizen and he's a child. As president, his duty is to protect Americans, and we're not seeing that for Mohammed, he stated.
A state department spokesperson has confirmed they are monitoring Mohammed's case closely and collaborating with the Israeli government, although they cannot provide further commentary due to privacy considerations.
Due to Mohammed's American citizenship and the public nature of his case, it has garnered attention from US lawmakers, with many expressing concern over the lack of action from the US government. Senator Chris Van Hollen remarked, This is a case where the US does have influence. It's just failing to exercise its influence, and that's a great dereliction of duty. If this were any other country, you would be seeing a much bigger effort.
Mohammed is currently held without charge at Ofer prison, which also houses adult detainees, including those convicted of severe crimes. His situation is part of a larger issue affecting many Palestinian minors in detention, with numerous child detainees reportedly held without charges in Israeli prisons.
As his father waits for news, the strain of inaction weighs heavily on him, as he clings to hope for his son's safe return.
