Advocates claim the 16-year-old’s health has deteriorated since his arrest in February for allegedly throwing stones.
Published November 27, 2025
Israeli authorities have released Palestinian-American teenager Mohamed Ibrahim after more than nine months in detention. Supporters say the incident exemplifies Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
Mr. Muhammad’s release on Thursday came after a months-long pressure campaign by U.S. lawmakers and civil rights groups.
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The teenager from Florida, aged 15, was arrested and taken from his parents’ home in the town of al-Mazrah ash-Sharqiyah, near Ramallah, in February.
He turned 16 while being held in an Israeli prison, where he lost a lot of weight and developed a skin infection.
“Words cannot describe the immense relief we feel as a family now that Muhammad is in the arms of his parents,” Zeyad Kadr, Mohammed’s uncle, said in a statement.
“We could not believe that Muhammad would be free until his parents wrapped their arms around him and he felt safe.”
Mr. Mohammed was arrested on suspicion of throwing stones at Israeli settlers, a charge he denies. His father, Zahel Ibrahim, and other relatives told Al Jazeera earlier this year that Mohammed was blindfolded and assaulted during a raid on his family home in February.
Israeli authorities did not allow him to contact his family while in prison, nor did he have visitation rights. The only updates his loved ones were receiving were through U.S. authorities who were allowed to meet with Muhammad.
While he was in custody, his family begged the administration of US President Donald Trump to facilitate his release, or at least ensure he had adequate food and medical care.
“Israeli soldiers had no right to take Muhammad away from us in the first place,” Qadr said in a statement Thursday.
“For more than nine months, our family has lived through a terrifying and never-ending nightmare. Mohammad’s mother and father in particular have not been able to see or touch their youngest son for nearly a year, knowing that Israeli soldiers were beating and starving him.”
The pressure campaign for Mr. Mohammed’s release intensified in recent weeks following reports that his health was deteriorating.
Last month, 27 U.S. lawmakers joined a letter urging the Trump administration to urge Israel to release him.
Individual members of Congress, including Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen, have also raised awareness of the case and called for Muhammad’s release.
Thursday’s statement thanked those who pushed for Mohammad’s release and said the family planned to celebrate his belated 16th birthday and celebrate his freedom with his mother, Muna, serving him his favorite meal.
“No mother, father, parent, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, or child should ever go through what Muhammad just went through,” Qadr wrote.
