Israel deports British activist who protected Palestinian children

Finn Joughin is back home in Britain after being deported by Israel for pro-Palestine activism in the occupied West Bank.

Pro-Palestine activist Finn Joughin was detained by Israeli forces and deported to Britain [Aljazeera]

London, United Kingdom – British student Finn Joughin has been deported from Israel following his pro-Palestine activism in the occupied West Bank.

The 22-year-old worked in the village of Umm al-Khair as an international volunteer with Proactive Presence, the movement that aims to protect Palestinian communities from settler attacks.

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He was kidnapped by Israeli settlers at gunpoint on August 29 after intervening to protect Palestinian children playing football in the village in Masafer Yatta.

Umm al-Khair is an area of the southern West Bank under Israeli administrative and security control, which was designated as Area C under the Oslo Accords. Palestinian communities there have been under continuous attack by Israeli settlers in recent months and years.

“I had just taken a seat on the side of the pitch when maybe five or six teenagers arrived and attempted to kind of take over the pitch from the Palestinian kids,” Joughin told Al Jazeera.

“Soon the parents and settler families surrounded the pitch and were egging the kids on, shouting at the Palestinians.

Local and foreign activists intervened to protect the children, with young settlers trying to force open the gates of the home of one of Umm al-Khair’s residents.

Joughin tried to block the settlers from tearing down a fence but was kicked and shoved by the group. Adult settlers arrived and put Joughin in a chokehold and twisted his arm around his back. Videos shared on social media showed him being taken back to the illegal Carmel settler outpost at gunpoint.

“I was placed in I what I’d call a concrete shed, which I was later told was a bomb shelter. They took my phone and wallet off me. They demanded to see my passport. They were kind of making accusations at me,” he said.

Family and friends of Awdah Hathaleen attend his funeral on August 7, 2025 in the Bedouin village of Umm al-Kheir in the occupied West Bank. The 31-year-old Palestinian activist and father of three was killed on July 28 when Israeli settler Yinon Levi allegedly opened fire during a confrontation there [Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images]

Settlers accused him of being an “anarchist” and commented on his supposed “friends in Iran”.

Joughin was held captive by armed settlers for around 30 minutes before the Israeli army arrived and he was taken to a police station in the settlement of Kiryat Arba in Hebron.

When he told soldiers that he had been kidnapped by settlers, he said he was insulted and shouted and spat at.

“This was my first realisation that the Israeli police and military were going to be no less cordial or sympathetic to my situation than the settlers themselves,” he said.

“So, I realised it was best not to try and resist or make any strong moves and to hope that maybe I could wait it out. But once I heard the police arrived, maybe half an hour later, it dawned on me that I was about to be arrested.”

A lawyer told Joughin that police were investigating him on suspicion of assault. However, police later told him that a “higher authority” had decided to keep him in custody, before he was formall arrested.

The next day, he was taken in handcuffs to the magistrate’s court in occupied Jerusalem. His lawyer and the public prosecutor agreed that instead of continuing legal proceedings, he would be deported to the UK.

Young Palestinians play football on a dirt field as Israeli settlers unload supplies for the caravans set up menacingly close to the children’s play area [File: Al Jazeera]

At an immigration detention centre near Ben Gurion International Airport, investigators questioned his reasons for being in the West Bank, his positions on Israel and the war on Gaza and Iran.

During his detention, Joughin saw a badly bruised Palestinian detainee begging his mother not to protest, fearing she would also be arrested.

“My escort officer witnessed this and kind of laughingly turned to me and went, ‘Welcome to Israel’,” he said.

“Whether he meant that somewhat bittersweetly or whether he was entirely laughing at the situation, I couldn’t quite tell, but either way it felt pretty real.”

After being threatened with extended detention, he signed deportation papers and waived his right to appeal. He was deported to Britain on August 31 and has been barred from returning to Israel or the occupied Palestinian Territory for 10 years.

“It’s scary and of course it was a surreal experience to go through, but it’s something I don’t regret at all doing. It’s something that I am proud to say that I was there for… after seeing some of the bravest people I’ve ever met,” he told Al Jazeera.

“I’m working as quickly as possible on trying to clear my name, repeal my ban, and, if I can, return to Umm al-Khair.”

The village has been repeatedly targeted by settler attacks in recent years. A local Palestinian activist was shot dead last year and a settler has been charged with his death.

Masafer Yatta is among the Palestinian communities in the West Bank to suffer a series of pogroms by Israeli settlers in recent weeks.

Settlers and Israeli troops have carried out 11,074 attacks in the West Bank during the first half of this year, according to the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission.

When reached for comment, a UK Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We provided consular support to a British man who was detained in Umm al Kheir and were in contact with his family and the Israeli authorities.”

Al Jazeera approached the Israeli military for comment.

芬恩·乔金因在被占领的约旦河西岸从事亲巴勒斯坦活动而被以色列驱逐出境，现已返回英国。

亲巴勒斯坦活动人士芬恩·乔金被以色列军队拘留并驱逐到英国 [半岛电视台]

英国伦敦——英国学生芬恩·乔金因在被占领的西岸地区从事亲巴勒斯坦活动而被以色列驱逐出境。

这位 22 岁的年轻人曾在乌姆·海尔村担任“积极存在”（Proactive Presence）组织的国际志愿者，该组织旨在保护巴勒斯坦社区免受定居者袭击。

以色列指控定居者杀害巴勒斯坦活动人士奥达·哈塔林（Awdah Hathaleen）的事件（共四条，此为第一条）：以色列指控定居者杀害巴勒斯坦活动人士奥达·哈塔林

巴勒斯坦人被占领的西岸地区在原住民日保持坚定立场（共4条记录，此为第2条）

巴勒斯坦周刊（共四篇）之三：内塔尼亚胡对加沙路线图态度暧昧

名单中的第四名：四名巴勒斯坦以色列定居者袭击受害者正面临争取正义的斗争

8月29日，他在马萨费尔亚塔村保护踢足球的巴勒斯坦儿童时，被以色列定居者持枪绑架。

乌姆海尔是约旦河西岸南部的一个地区，目前处于以色列的行政和安全控制之下，根据《奥斯陆协议》，该地区被划为C区。近几个月和几年来，当地的巴勒斯坦社区一直遭受以色列定居者的持续袭击。

“我刚在球场边坐下，就来了五六个青少年，试图从巴勒斯坦的孩子们手中夺取球场，”乔金告诉半岛电视台。

“很快，家长和定居者家庭就围住了球场，他们怂恿孩子们，对着巴勒斯坦人大喊大叫。

当地和外国活动人士介入保护儿童，年轻的定居者试图强行打开乌姆·海尔一位居民家的大门。

乔金试图阻止定居者拆除围栏，却遭到一群人的踢打和推搡。成年定居者赶到后，用锁喉的方式控制住乔金，并将他的手臂扭到背后。社交媒体上流传的视频显示，他被持枪押送回了非法的卡梅尔定居点。

“他们把我关进一个我称之为水泥棚的地方，后来我才知道那是个防空洞。他们拿走了我的手机和钱包，要求查看我的护照，还对我进行了一些指控，”他说。

2025年8月7日，阿瓦达·哈塔林（Awdah Hathaleen）的家人和朋友在被占领的约旦河西岸贝都因村庄乌姆·阿尔·凯尔（Umm al-Kheir）参加了他的葬礼。这位31岁的巴勒斯坦活动家、三个孩子的父亲于7月28日被以色列定居者伊农·列维（Yinon Levi）枪杀，据称列维在冲突中开枪射杀了他。[Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images]

定居者指责他是“无政府主义者”，并对他所谓的“伊朗朋友”评头论足。

约金被武装定居者扣押了大约 30 分钟，之后以色列军队赶到，将他带到希伯伦基里亚特阿尔巴定居点的一个警察局。

当他告诉士兵他被定居者绑架时，他说他遭到了侮辱、辱骂和吐口水。

他说：“这是我第一次意识到，以色列警察和军队对我的处境不会比定居者们更冷漠或更同情。”

“所以，我意识到最好不要反抗或采取任何强硬行动，而是希望也许可以熬过去。但大约半小时后，当我听到警察到达时，我才意识到自己即将被捕。”

律师告诉乔金，警方正在调查他涉嫌袭击的案件。然而，警方后来告诉他，“上级”已决定在他正式被捕前继续拘留他。

第二天，他被戴上手铐押送到被占领的耶路撒冷地方法院。他的律师和公诉人一致同意，不再继续进行法律诉讼，而是将他遣返回英国。

巴勒斯坦青年在泥地上踢足球，而以色列定居者则在离儿童游乐区不远的地方卸下物资，这些物资将运往停放在那里的房车，显得十分危险。[图片来源：半岛电视台]

在靠近本古里安国际机场的一个移民拘留中心，调查人员询问了他身处西岸的原因，以及他对以色列、加沙战争和伊朗战争的立场。

在被拘留期间，乔金看到一名伤痕累累的巴勒斯坦被拘留者恳求他的母亲不要抗议，因为他担心母亲也会被逮捕。

“我的护送人员目睹了这一切，他笑着转过身对我说：‘欢迎来到以色列’，”他说。

“我无法确定他这话是带着一丝苦涩，还是完全在嘲笑这种情况，但无论如何，感觉都很真实。”

在面临长期拘留威胁后，他签署了驱逐出境文件并放弃了上诉权。他于8月31日被驱逐到英国，并被禁止在10年内返回以色列或被占领的巴勒斯坦领土。

“这很可怕，当然，这是一次超现实的经历，但我一点也不后悔。我很自豪地说，我当时在场……因为我见到了我所见过的最勇敢的人们，”他告诉半岛电视台。

“我正在尽一切努力尽快洗清我的罪名，撤销对我的禁令，如果可以的话，希望能回到乌姆海尔。”

近年来，该村庄屡遭定居者袭击。去年，一名当地巴勒斯坦活动人士遭枪击身亡，一名定居者已被指控与此案有关。

马萨费尔·亚塔是约旦河西岸巴勒斯坦社区中，最近几周遭受以色列定居者一系列迫害的社区之一。

据殖民化和隔离墙抵抗委员会称，今年上半年，定居者和以色列军队在西岸发动了 11074 次袭击。

当被问及此事时，英国外交部发言人表示：“我们向一名在乌姆海尔被拘留的英国男子提供了领事援助，并与他的家人和以色列当局保持联系。”

半岛电视台已联系以色列军方寻求置评。