Israel extends the detention of Palestinian Women’s National Football team player

Israeli authorities have extended the detention of Rand Halawani until Friday. The 20-year-old football player was detained earlier this week on Tuesday by Israeli authorities.

According to the Palestine Football Association and the Jerusalem Governorate, Rand Halawani was summoned to the Tel Beit Police Station in West Jerusalem on Tuesday and was arrested upon arrival.

On Wednesday, Halawani was brought before a Magistrate’s Court in Jerusalem, which extended her detention until next Friday under the pretext of completing an investigation. The reason for her detention was not specified.

Mohammad Mahmoud, a lawyer with the Wadi Hilweh Information Center in Jerusalem, informed the media about details related to Rand Halawani’s arrest and indicated that he is preparing to file an urgent appeal with the Central Court of Israel to challenge the detention and demand the player’s immediate release.

Detention of Natalie Abu Diya

On the same day as Rand Halawani’s arrest, the occupation authorities also arrested Natalie Abu Diya, a media student at Birzeit University and a former national football player. Israeli forces raided her residence in the town of Birzeit, north of Ramallah.

According to Al Jazeera, Birzeit University denounced the arrests as part of Israel’s “systematic policies targeting Palestinian education and students’ right to continue their academic journey.”

Statement of Palestine Football Association

In an official statement released by the Palestinian Football Association, the association condemned the detention of its players and said, “Their arrest is not an isolated incident; it is part of a well-documented pattern of systematic targeting of Palestinian athletes, which continues without accountability.”

The federation added: “What our players are being subjected to is a documented and repeated violation of international law, FIFA regulations, and the principles of the Olympic Charter, which guarantee freedom of movement, non-discrimination, and the protection of athletes worldwide.”

Travel ban on Musab Abu Salem

The PFA was right to point out the pattern of Israel targeting Palestinian athletes. Only recently, Musab Abu Salem was banned from travelling when Israeli authorities stopped him at the Allenby Bridge crossing and prevented him from travelling to Italy with the Palestine Stars team.

Palestinian media reported that the team was scheduled to play a solidarity and humanitarian match against a Napoli Stars selection in support of the Palestinian people.

Apart from Natalie Abu Diya, three other young Palestinian women were also detained in the occupied West Bank. The occupied West Bank has witnessed escalating Israeli military raids, arrests, and settlement expansion since the start of Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023.