By Fayha Shalash in Ramallah, occupied Palestine<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pounding on the door came before dawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Ahmed Safi awoke to the sound of Israeli soldiers storming his apartment building in Birzeit town, he assumed they were there for someone else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Palestinian father never imagined the raid would end with the arrest of his 20-year-old daughter, Sama, a psychology student at Birzeit University, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe were surprised, even shocked. We never expected the raid to be for her arrest,\u201d Ahmed told Middle East Eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the family, soldiers entered the building in the early hours of Tuesday morning, shouting orders as they moved through the premises.
They demanded the identity cards of Ahmed, his wife and their daughter before informing Sama that they had an arrest warrant for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen we asked why she was being arrested, the officer and the soldiers would only say: \u2018You\u2019ll find out in court,’\u201d Ahmed said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The soldiers then ransacked Sama\u2019s room, confiscating her phone, laptop and personal belongings. They also seized photographs of her cousin, Ayser Safi, who was killed by Israeli forces in 2024. Sama was then taken downstairs, handcuffed, blindfolded and placed in a military vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For her family, the arrest has been compounded by concerns over her health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sama suffers from Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF), a chronic inflammatory disease that requires ongoing medication to prevent severe complications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ahmed said he repeatedly tried to explain his daughter\u2019s medical condition to the soldiers but was given no opportunity to do so. \u201cWe are extremely worried about her health,\u201d he said. \u201cWithout her medication, she suffers from high fevers, body aches and other debilitating symptoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe disease causes an autoimmune attack, and if the medication is ignored, it will cause serious liver and kidney damage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The family has since learned that Sama is being held at the Al-Maskubiya interrogation centre in Jerusalem. Her first court hearing is scheduled for next Tuesday. The charges are as yet unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Women footballers targeted<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sama was one of five women detained by Israeli forces this week, three of them current students at Birzeit University and one graduate of the institution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Among those arrested were two members of the Palestinian women\u2019s national football team: Natalie Abu Diya, 20, and Rand Halawani, 20.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other two were Julan Abu Awad and graduate Laila Nael Khalil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abu Diya, a media studies student, was detained from her university residence during what witnesses described as a violent overnight raid by Israeli soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her father, Samer Abu Diya, told MEE that Natalie had represented Palestine internationally as a member of the national under-18 women\u2019s football team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe were speaking to her on the phone until around 10.30pm,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe told us she had 13 assignments to complete and would be staying up late to finish them. At 3.30 am, her roommates called to tell us the army had arrested her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Natalie was later transferred to Ofer Prison, where she met with her lawyer. Her family says they remain uncertain about what charges, if any, she faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNatalie is my youngest daughter. She\u2019s independent, determined and exceptionally bright,\u201d Samer said. \u201cI\u2019m not worried about her ability to endure this, but I am deeply saddened by the injustice she is facing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Israeli police also arrested Rand Halawani, a member of the Palestinian women\u2019s national football team, after summoning her for questioning in Jerusalem. Her detention was extended until Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Palestine Football Association (PFA) condemned the \u201cunjust arrests\u201d in the strongest possible terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTheir arrest is not an isolated incident, it is part of a well-documented pattern of systematic targeting of Palestinian athletes, which continues without accountability,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe PFA calls on FIFA, continental confederations, and the wider international sporting community to move beyond statements and take concrete disciplinary action within the footballing framework to address these ongoing violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe targeting of Palestinian athletes must end. The impunity must end. The double standards must end.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Act of revenge\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abu Awad, a third-year public administration student at Birzeit University, was arrested during a raid on her family\u2019s home before dawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her sister, Jenin Abu Awad, said the family was left stunned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe tried to ask why she was being arrested, but they told us we would find out in court and that she would be detained for a long time,\u201d she told MEE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey thoroughly searched her room and turned everything upside down.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The arrest came just a week after soldiers raided the family home without making any arrests. During that raid, they interrogated family members and confiscated personal items, including a bottle of perfume and a packet of cigarettes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Julan is now being held at Al-Maskubiya. Her family said she suffers from severe recurring migraines and requires regular medication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe needs strong painkillers and a sedative injection because when she has a migraine, she vomits, cannot tolerate light, and needs complete silence,\u201d her sister said. \u201cWe are very worried about her health.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Israeli forces carry out daily arrest raids across the occupied West Bank, detaining scores of Palestinians each week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Palestinian prisoner rights groups, around 9,000 Palestinians are currently held in Israeli prisons, half of them without charge or trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abdullah Zaghari, head of the Palestinian Prisoners\u2019 Club, said there had been a marked increase in the detention of girls and women, particularly university students and former prisoners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said many arrests were being carried out under allegations of \u201cincitement\u201d, often linked to social media activity expressing opposition to the occupation or solidarity with Palestinians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that they are at risk due to punitive Israeli prison measures, including abuse, medical negligence and solitary confinement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe number of arrests of male and female university students has increased under this pretext, which has no legal basis whatsoever,\u201d Zaghari said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese arrests are part of ongoing acts of revenge against the Palestinian people by the occupation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Palestinian Prisoners\u2019 Club said the number of women currently held in Israeli prisons has risen to 89, including three children, three pregnant women and two women with cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most are being held in Damon Prison, while others remain in interrogation and detention centres.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At least 19 women are held under administrative detention after being accused of incitement \u2013 a procedure that allows imprisonment without charge or trial for renewable periods indefinitely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
IMAGE CREDIT: Rand Halawani, 20, was one of five women arrested by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank this week, including two footballers and three university students ( PHOTO> X )<\/p>\n\n\n\n
[ SOURCE: MIDDLE EAST EYE ]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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