Arab Americans Visiting Israel Said to Be at Risk

A coalition of Arab Americans and civil rights monitors, alleging that an 18-year-old U.S. citizen of Palestinian origin was tortured while in Israeli custody, is urging the State Department to warn tourists with Arab-sounding names that they risk harassment and imprisonment in Israel that other visitors do not face.

Launching a campaign this week to win freedom for Hashem Mufleh, a New Mexico native charged by the Israelis with membership in the Islamic extremist group Hamas and with throwing a stone at an Israeli vehicle, the coalition accused the Clinton administration of condoning police methods in Israel that would bring strong protests if practiced by other countries.

“The United States is guilty of being an enabler of the practice of torture, even on American citizens,” said Jerri Bird, president of Partners for Peace, a U.S. human rights group.

Bird said Israeli authorities refused to allow U.S. consular officials to visit Mufleh for 11 days after his August arrest, in violation of international law requiring prompt diplomatic access to jailed foreigners. She said Mufleh complained of being forced to wear a urine-soaked hood and of being tied into a contorted position and subjected to prolonged periods of loud music.

In response to questions, the State Department acknowledged that U.S. consular officers were not allowed to see Mufleh at the beginning of his incarceration but said that they have visited him five times since. He remains under arrest.

“We have delivered a diplomatic note to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally requesting an investigation of Mr. Mufleh’s allegations of mistreatment,” the department said. “The ministry has not yet responded to our note.”

Although Bird focused on Mufleh’s case, she also listed earlier cases in which U.S. citizens of Arab origin were subjected to harsh treatment in Israel. She said Israel makes no distinction between American citizens and others accused of security offenses.

The coalition called on the State Department to warn tourists that it is dangerous for Americans with Arab-sounding names to visit Israel.

The State Department said it has already issued a general statement on travel to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip that notes that Americans arrested for security offenses “often are not permitted to communicate with consular officials, lawyers or family members in a timely manner.”

A department official said: “Of course we have raised our concerns about all of this with the government of Israel, and we will continue to do so.”

Mufleh, who had lived for two years in Al Birah, a West Bank town under control of the Palestinian Authority, was arrested as he was about to leave the Middle East to enroll at the University of New Mexico. He is scheduled to go on trial Wednesday.

Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Zalman Shoval, said Mufleh’s case was handled properly. He said that Mufleh is now represented by Palestinian human rights attorney Jonathan Kuttab.