CAIRO: An American University in Cairo (AUC) student has been granted an extension on an Israeli deportation order after being held in an Israeli detention center.
AUC English literature undergraduate Sarah Hawas, 21, was in Jerusalem to show solidarity with Palestinians being evicted from their homes
Hawas told Daily News Egypt from Jerusalem Friday that her lawyer was successful in securing an extension on the deportation order.
“I was meant to leave the day before yesterday but my lawyer managed to get an extension and I’m staying until I get a hearing, she said, adding that succeeding in attaining this was almost unheard of.
Hawas, who holds a dual Egyptian-American citizenship, previously told Daily News Egypt that she was contesting the deportation order because “the [initial] arrest was illegal as she had entered Jerusalem from Jordan with a valid visa.
As part of the International Solidarity Movement, Hawas was detained while protesting the eviction of Palestinian families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem on Aug. 2.
Twelve other protestors were detained and a judge later ordered their release. “But because I had a court order against me from before to not enter the neighborhood for three weeks, I was held, she said.
She was held in the Ramle Detention Center until Aug. 9 but said she was not mistreated during her incarceration. However, Israeli authorities decided to deport her, first to the US and then to Jordan within three days of her release.
Even after her release, her personal belongings, including her passport, were held for an extra 24 hours.
Hawas had already been detained in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood July 13 and released under the condition that she not re-enter the neighborhood for three weeks.
AUC, which is in summer recess, had no knowledge of Hawas’ detainment when contacted by Daily News Egypt and the Israeli embassy in Cairo had no information regarding the matter.
Hawas has been in Jerusalem since early July. It is her first visit.
