FRIENDS OF PALESTINIAN DETAINEES PROJECT
Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) is launching their pilot initiative called “Friends of Palestinian Detainees”. 12 congregations are in the process of being paired up with 12 detainees for a year. The invitation is to have human contact at an international level, new relationships with the outside world, emotional and spiritual support from international people of faith and congregations, and an opportunity to have their stories and struggles heard and treated with dignity through interpersonal care and support.
FOSNA promotes the vision of Sabeel Jerusalem, an ecumenical liberation theology movement founded by Palestinian Christians in the Holy Land, joining Friends of Sabeel chapters around the world. FOSNA amplifies the voice of Palestinians by advocating in churches, communities, and governments for justice, peace, and liberation in Palestine.
Friends of Palestinian Detainees is partially inspired by Matthew 25:35-40.
35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
In this context, a detainee is someone who is held in administrative detention. Administrative detention is a procedure that allows Israeli soldiers to hold prisoners indefinitely on secret information without charging them or allowing them to stand trial. The secret information or evidence cannot be accessed by the detainee nor their lawyer. The court issues an administrative detention order for a maximum period of six months but can be renewed for an unlimited time.
Oak Life Church is a friend of Layan
Oak Life Church has been paired up with Layan. You can watch her tell her story here.
Layan Nasir is a Palestinian Christian from the West Bank. She was first arrested and held on administrative detention in 2021 for handing out sandwiches to students participating in a student action on campus. She was released in December 2023 but continues to have a charge pending in the courts for the first “offense”.
Layan was violently arrested from her home by Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) with guns pointed at her parent’s heads a second time in April 2024. She was held at Damon Women’s prison in which she and other prisoners including children, were beaten, and subjected to inhumane conditions; food, hygiene, fresh air, showers and bedding withheld.
Because of international intervention of several dignitaries and organizations, Layan was released from administrative detention in December 2024.
Layan is a recent graduate of Birzeit University with a Bachelor’s in Nutrition and Business Administration. Her family were founding members of Birzeit University.
Layan’s desire for this project is to shed light on the severe apartheid system that exists for Palesintians and the dire conditions of the internationally illegal use of the Israeli prison system. She does not want the focus to be on her but for the collective of her fellow Palestinians.
UPDATES:
August 2025
From our contacts: Layan has been assigned a court date of September 7th, 2025. This will be in front of a military tribunal, not a civil court as that right is only reserved for Israeli citizens, not Palestinians. The charge has something to do with passing out sandwiches to fellow students at Berzeit University during a student demonstration. Conviction rates in these courts are over 99%. So this is not good news. Last year she was held on administrative detention for over seven months, and subjected to various methods of abuse and neglect. Layan is 25 years old.
May 2025:
Layan and Basel, twin siblings—a sister and a brother. They are now 25 years old.
Last year, they were torn apart when Layan, a fresh graduate from Birzeit University, was kidnapped by the Israeli occupation and held in administrative detention—without charge or trial.
For the first time in their lives, the twins could not celebrate their birthday together, a day they had always cherished and shared.
This year, after her release, Layan wrote on their birthday:
"A year ago today, and for the first time since we were born, we were apart on our birthday.
That was the first time we shared absence and longing, instead of joy and candles.
And still, in the occupation’s prisons, thousands of prisoners dream of reunion.
And still, the families of the martyrs wait for their children—forever.
Happy birthday, my lifelong companion, Basel—on this day, every day, and forever. "**
ACTION ITEMS:
1. Please pray for Layan and her family as she awaits a military court date. Pray for her strength and health and for mercy by the Israeli Military Court system. May justice find its way to Layan, granting her freedom.
2. Pray to our just and merciful God to open the eyes of the world. Particularly to our leaders in the United States. Bring a change of heart. Enable us to find a way to end the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza, and to the apartheid regime in Israel and the occupied lands.
3. Write to our Representatives in Congress and the Senate. (see attachments below for contact information). CLICK HERE FOR LETTER TEMPLATE
Ask them to acknowledge that Israel is not a democracy if it allows due process to only Jewish citizens. Let them know that Christians, and Jewish dissenters are also persecuted and subject to administrative detentions and violence.
Encourage them to make a moral decision to stop arming Israel, call for an immediate cease fire and change our foreign policy to one that would reflect the value and human rights of all the people of the Holy Land. To work toward an enduring peace and autonomy through diplomacy, not war. To our congressional representatives ask them to vote for HR3565 “Stop the Bombs Act."
Plead for Layan and the over 3300 other detainees held in Israeli prisons, including women and children, that they be given due process of legal representation, humane prison conditions and visits by their family members, and ultimately their release.
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES:
Browse the Resource Bank to educate yourself and others regarding the history of Colonialism, the Zionist Movement and oppressive systems that exist for Palestinians living in Gaza, The West Bank and Jerusalem.
MORE RESOURCES (CLICK HERE)
NEWS:
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250818-report-israel-used-police-dogs-to-attack-palestinian-female-detainees/
Israeli parliament approves symbolic motion on West Bank annexation
