UK raises detention of British activist with Israeli authorities

The UK Foreign Office has confirmed that it has addressed the detention of a British citizen in the occupied West Bank with Israeli officials. The individual, 22-year-old student activist Finn Joughin, was taken into custody on Saturday following an incident in Umm Al-Kheir, where he was reportedly seized by Israeli settlers who had encroached on the Palestinian village.

Since the onset of the Gaza conflict, ignited by the Hamas-led assault on Israel on 7 October 2023, there has been a notable increase in attacks from settlers targeting Palestinians and their property in the West Bank. It should be noted that all Israeli settlements are considered illegal under international law, and while outposts also violate Israeli law, they frequently receive support in terms of state funding and services.

The Saturday confrontation occurred near Hebron, in a village that settlers have recently begun to surround. Eyewitness reports from other activists describe children from both Palestinian and settler families playing football when the settler children began to interfere. The settlers then proceeded to dismantle a fence around a home. Video footage shared online by both groups shows Joughin positioned by the fence, apparently shielding it as a settler child pushes against him.

Israeli police stated that the foreign national was initially detained by the community security personnel, who suspected him of committing an indecent act against a minor. On Sunday, a police statement clarified: “The suspect was transferred to the police for questioning, which included, among other things, taking statements that raised suspicion of an assault against a minor. Following his questioning, the suspect was taken into custody, and the investigation into the incident remains ongoing.” Contrastingly, Joughin’s family told the BBC that he was expected to be deported from Israel on Monday. Activists present during the incident denied any inappropriate conduct, with fellow activist Matthew saying, “In every single instance, it was the settler kids who approached Finn.

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