Hundreds rally in New York to push for release of 16-year-old Ahed Tamimi

Hundreds of protesters took to New York’s streets on Tuesday evening to demand the release of Ahed Tamimi, the 16-year-old Palestinian girl held in Israeli military detention.

Hundreds of demonstrators occupied the Port Authority Bus Terminal, near the Times Square, calling for suspending funds to the Israeli occupation.

Ahed Tamimi is a Palestinian activist from the village of Nabi Salih in the occupied West Bank. She is best known for appearances in images and videos in which she confronts Israeli soldiers. Her supporters consider her a symbol of resistance against Israeli occupation

The demonstration is part of a series of worldwide actions marking both Ahed's 17th birthday on Wednesday, January 31, and the start of her Israeli military trial, scheduled to begin the same day.

Tamimi was detained after she was filmed slapping an Israeli soldier who used her family home, in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh early the morning of December 19, two days before her detention, to open fire at village youths confronting Israeli forces who raided their village.

Tamimi’s detention has generated universal condemnations and protests against the Israeli occupation authorities.