Jewish-American woman deported from Israel after witnessing child struck by car in West Bank

A general view shows the football field and surrounding homes in the village of Umm Al-Khair in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, West Bank on Feb. 12, 2026. Photo by Mosab Shawer/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

(JTA) — Israel has deported another Jewish-American young adult involved in solidarity efforts for West Bank Palestinians, adding to what critics say is an unjust crackdown on left-wing activists.

Because of the war with Iran, which has disrupted flights, Israel deported the woman into Egypt rather than sending her on a plane to the United States, as it did for two Jewish-American women deported in November after, police said, they entered a “closed” area of the West Bank.

The new deportation followed an incident Friday in the Bedouin village of Umm Al-Khair in which a 5-year-old Palestinian child, Siwar Al-Hathaleen, was struck by a car driven by a Jewish West Bank settler. Umm Al-Khair is a hotspot for violent confrontations between settlers who are expanding their presence in the area and local Palestinians, including one last year in which a settler shot to death another member of the Al-Hathaleen clan, Awadh, whose activism had been the subject of an Academy Award-winning documentary.

Multiple videos of the new incident reviewed by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency show the vehicle hitting the child with its side mirror after she ran toward the road near a local playground. The Jewish woman can be seen attempting to prevent the driver from fleeing the scene.

The Israel Police Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement that the driver “immediately stopped at the scene, called emergency and rescue services, and provided assistance” and noted that a “preliminary investigation” had found the driver not at fault. It said that “several Palestinians and three foreign activists began to disturb the public order at the scene, acted violently, and caused damage to the driver’s vehicle.”

The videos reviewed by JTA, which cover the period after the attack, do not show damage to the vehicle. The activists deny the allegations against them, and they have not been charged with any crimes.

After detaining the three foreigners, the statement said, police let two go with warnings to stay away from the area or risk being deported. The third had received a previous warning “in recent months” and was turned over to immigration officials.

Given a 10-year ban from Israel, the third activist was subsequently deported through the Taba Crossing with Egypt on Sunday. She has not yet spoken publicly about her experience.

The deportation comes amid a number of incidents that critics of the government say show that it has become emboldened in its crackdown on Jewish leftists. Several times, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has recently praised “our partners in the Population [and Immigration] Authority for their decisive and professional work that led to the expulsion of dozens of anarchist activists who identified with a terror organization.”

Engaging in solidarity efforts with West Bank Palestinians is an ongoing tradition among some liberal U.S. Jews, who argue that confronting rising violence against Palestinians there is essential both morally and to securing Israel’s future.

Gilad Kariv, a Reform rabbi who is a member of the opposition in the Knesset, said in a statement that the deportation reflected “improper collusion between the police and the Population Authority, which in practice is serving as a contractor for the deportation of Jewish left-wing activists.”

Kariv vowed to bring the matter before the Diaspora Affairs committee and called on U.S. Jewish leaders to “respond to this phenomenon of deporting American Jews from Israel simply because they don’t sit well with Ben-Gvir’s extremism.”