In the early morning of October 18, Shadi Khoury, a 16-year-old student at the Quaker Ramallah Friends School in the West Bank, was brutally beaten by Israeli forces in his home, dragged away bleeding, and interrogated without the presence of his family or legal counsel.

Shadi has had more than one court appearance since then, and his detention is repeatedly extended, without any charges being brought against him. His attorney has had little opportunity to speak with him, and he has appeared in court with multiple injuries. This boy should be at home with his family and getting medical attention.

Shadi Khoury is just one of hundreds of Palestinian children this year who have been traumatized, detained, injured, and even killed through actions of Israeli military in the occupied West Bank.

Right now, according to the UN, roughly 175 Palestinian minors are being held in military detention by Israel.
Since the year 2000, roughly 13,000 children in the occupied Palestinian territory have been detained, prosecuted, and incarcerated by the Israeli army.  

There have been tens of thousands of these child victims through more than 50 years of the Israeli occupation.

Generation after generation of Palestinian children living under military occupation have seen their childhoods stolen and have lived with years or decades of physical and emotional scars.

In 2015, UNICEF said that Palestinian children are systematically abused in Israeli military detention, and some of the treatment they face amounts to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention against Torture

These children are interrogated for days without legal counsel, under violence or the threat of violence. Confessions are forced, and often detainees are forced to sign confessions in Hebrew even if they cannot read what they are signing. 99% of these children are convicted in a military court system that does not meet minimum standards for due process.

There is growing evidence that U.S. laws prohibiting U.S. aid from being used for gross violations of human rights are being regularly violated. It is the responsibility of U.S. officials such as you to hold Israel accountable to our laws, especially when human rights are systematically violated.

I urge you to take these actions today —

For my Senators and my Representative:
Make two phone calls, to the US State Department and to the Israeli Embassy, demanding the immediate release of Shadi Khoury and calling fo an end to the military detention of all Palestinian children.

For my Representative:
Become a co-sponsor of HR 2590, the Palestinian Children and Families Act, which is a step in the right direction of protecting Palestinians' human rights.

As Israel's greatest protector and funder, the U.S. must also hold Israel accountable for its systematic abuses of Palestinian rights.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.

Respectfully,