Via Grayzone Telegram Channel
Jeremy Loffredo is free
American journalist Jeremy Loffredo is on his way home after being informally deported by the Israeli police. Following an arbitrary arrest by the Israeli military at a West Bank checkpoint, Jeremy was blindfolded, shackled in a military truck, then held in solitary confinement for three days with little food or water. Israeli authorities had falsely accused him of "supporting an enemy during wartime" for legitimate reporting he performed for The Grayzone.
Though two Israeli judges ruled Jeremy's reporting did not violate the military censor's policy, they gave the police until October 20 to investigate him. During that period, the police seized and hacked into his phone, confiscated his wallet and passport, and interrogated him repeatedly at a station in occupied territory.
When the deadline to wrap the investigation arrived, the police quit their fishing expedition and ordered Jeremy to book the first available flight out of the country. He was interrogated one final time at Ben Gurion International Airport, then allowed to leave.
Jeremy's persecution for publishing factual journalism reflects the paranoid attitude of an Israeli state that is ruthlessly repressing critical reporting in the occupied West Bank and besieged Gaza Strip, where it has killed more than 120 Palestinian journalists in just over a year, making it the deadliest conflict for media professionals in the 21st century.
We're extremely grateful for the massive outpouring of support Jeremy received. The pressure generated by our colleagues, supporters and press freedom orgs played a pivotal role in ending his wrongful detention. Jeremy will provide a detailed account of the whole disturbing saga as soon as he returns to the US.