Netanyahu’s Son Wants to Move to the US

Yair Netanyahu
Yair Netanyahu
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Netanyahu’s Son Wants to Move to the US

Yair Netanyahu
Yair Netanyahu

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s son, Yair, is looking to obtain a visa that allows him to work and live in the United States, according to political sources in Tel Aviv.

Six months ago, Yair fled to Miami over his father's disapproval of his son's social media posts.

Later, reports said Yair indicated he has established his life in Florida and is currently looking for means to receive a Green Card. However, he expressed concern that his visa application would be denied because the administration of President Joe Biden is hostile to him and his family, one of his close associates told the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.

He, therefore, contacted an American immigration lawyer to obtain a visa that would permit him to work and live in the United States.

Attorney Michael Wildes, a co-founder of the Wildes & Weinberg immigration policies law firm, announced via social media that Yair, an “internationally renowned political speaker and journalist in Israel and abroad,” according to the firm's website, is now counted among his clients.

The reports about Yair’s efforts to obtain a visa to the US were also confirmed by a political source who had a discussion with Netanyahu’s son and his wife, Sara, at the London wedding of the son of Zak and Candida Gertler, who are close to the Netanyahu family.

“I heard him say he was interested in working in the US long-term but expressed concern that his visa application would be denied due to strained Israel-US relations,” the source said.

Yair denied he had spoken about the strained relations between Israel and the US and refused to comment about his intention to obtain a work visa.

Yair is known to be a controversial figure and his far-right political positions and his hostility to his father’s opponents. His rude comments often negatively affected the Israeli PM. He had published provocative statements against the Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy and accused the army of attempting a coup against his father.

He also accused the US administration, led by Biden, of conspiring to overthrow his father's government.

Former Israeli deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon said Yair is not only a disobedient boy, “but in Washington, they consider him a toxic substance in the relations between his father and the White House.”

In March, Yair fled to Miami. Reports said he has established his life in Florida and currently has no plans to return to Israel.



Judge Releases Palestinian Student Activist Who was Arrested at His Citizenship Interview

Activists wave a Palestinian flag outside the White House during a memorial for Palestinians who have died during the past year of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Washington, US, June 5, 2021. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo
Activists wave a Palestinian flag outside the White House during a memorial for Palestinians who have died during the past year of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Washington, US, June 5, 2021. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo
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Judge Releases Palestinian Student Activist Who was Arrested at His Citizenship Interview

Activists wave a Palestinian flag outside the White House during a memorial for Palestinians who have died during the past year of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Washington, US, June 5, 2021. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo
Activists wave a Palestinian flag outside the White House during a memorial for Palestinians who have died during the past year of Israeli-Palestinian violence, in Washington, US, June 5, 2021. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo

A judge on Wednesday released a Palestinian man who led protests against the war in Gaza as a student at Columbia University and was arrested by immigration officials during an interview about finalizing his US citizenship.

Outside the courthouse in Vermont, Mohsen Mahdawhi led supporters in chanting “The people united will never be defeated” “No fear” and “Free Palestine.” He said people must come together in the defense of both democracy and humanity, The AP news reported.

“Never give up on the idea that justice will prevail,” he said. “We want to stand up for humanity, because the rest of the world - not only Palestine - is watching us. And what is going to happen in America is going to affect the rest of the world.”

His notice to appear in immigration court says Mahdawi is removable under the Immigration and Nationality Act because US Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined his presence and activities “would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences and would compromise a compelling US foreign policy interest.”

His lawyers say Mahdawi — legal permanent resident for 10 years — was detained in retaliation for his speech advocating for Palestinian human rights.

US District Judge Geoffrey Crawford in Burlington, Vermont, issued his ruling Wednesday following a hearing on Mahdawi, who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on April 14. He has been held at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans.

The government argues his detention is a “constitutionally valid aspect of the deportation process” and that district courts are barred from hearing challenges to how and when such proceedings are begun.

“District courts play no role in that process. Consequently, this Court lacks jurisdiction over Petitioner’s claims, which are all, at bottom, challenges to removal proceedings,” Michael Drescher, Vermont’s acting US attorney, wrote. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to a court filing, Mahdawi was born in a refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and moved to the United States in 2014. He recently completed coursework at Columbia and was expected to graduate in May before beginning a master’s degree program there in the fall.

As a student, Mahdawi was an outspoken critic of Israel’s war in Gaza and organized campus protests until March 2024. He cofounded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia with Mahmoud Khalil, another Palestinian permanent resident of the US and graduate student who was detained by immigration authorities.

Speaking to supporters, Mahdawi directly addressed President Donald Trump and his Cabinet, saying “I am not afraid of you.”

“If there is no fear, what is it replaced with?” he said. “Love. Love is our way.”

An immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that the government’s assertion that Khalil’s presence in the US posed “potentially serious foreign policy consequences” satisfied the requirements for deportation.