The State Department urged Israel on Monday not to deport Mubarak Awad, a Palestinian with U.S. citizenship, despite a ruling Sunday by the Israeli Supreme Court that he can be expelled from the country.
“Notwithstanding the court’s decision, we continue to urge that he not be deported,” State Department spokeswoman Phyllis Oakley said.
At the same time, Oakley noted that Awad, who advocates civil disobedience against Israeli rule, “was given every opportunity to present his case in the Israeli court.”
The three-judge panel, in its decision Sunday, ruled that although Awad was born in East Jerusalem, he forfeited his residency status when he became an American citizen after the 1967 Six-Day War.
The court did not rule on the Israeli government’s contention that Awad is a threat to security because of his public support of the Palestinian uprising against Israeli military rule in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Oakley noted that Secretary of State George Shultz raised the issue with Premier Yitzhak Shamir, who is also interior minister and thus “makes the final decision on whether Mr. Awad should be deported.”
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