Jewish-American comedian Sarah Silverman has thrown her support behind detained Palestinian teen activist Ahed Tamimi.
The iconic funny woman and actress called on fellow Jews to "stand up" against the injustice committed by the Israeli government. She expressed the sentiment in a tweet sharing an Amnesty International campaign raising awareness about the 17-year-old's ongoing detention.
"Jews have to stand up EVEN when — ESPECIALLY when — the wrongdoing is BY Jews/the Israeli government," Silverman wrote in the Thursday Twitter post.
Silverman has previously expressed her support for the Israeli state, although she appears to have left-wing and progressive views. Back in 2015, she encourage Israelis to get out and vote for a left-wing political party.
“ISRAEL! If you are a Meretz supporter you NEED to VOTE MARCH 17. Every vote counts. If you don’t vote, you can’t complain," she said, according to Jerusalem Post.
Silverman has also spoken publicly about her sister and family that reside in Israel. The comedian's sister is a member of the Women of the Wall movement, a multi-denominational feminist organization based in Israel.
Why is Tamimi detained?
Tamimi was arrested in a raid on her family's home in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh in December after a video of her slapping and kicking two Israeli soldiers went viral online.
The teen activist was fighting back against the Israeli soldiers just moments after they had shot her 15-year-old cousin in the face with a rubber bullet.
Although he survived the attack, Tamimi's cousin experienced severe internal bleeding and was put in a medically-induced coma for 72 hours.
During a military court hearing in January, Tamimi was formally charged on 12 counts. These include allegedly assaulting an Israeli soldier, interfering with a soldier's duties and two previous instances of stone-throwing.
The Amnesty campaign shared by Silverman says: “There is nothing Ahed Tamimi has done that can justify the continuing detention of a 17-year-old child."
"In detention, she endured aggressive interrogations, sometimes at night, and threats made against her family. Her trial before an Israeli military juvenile court is imminent – we must mobilize quickly and effectively," the human rights organization wrote.
Many American celebrities have expressed support for Tamimi
Many other prominent celebrities have raised their voices in support of Tamimi.
Actor Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon) actress Rosario Dawson (Rent, Seven Pounds) and actor Jesse Williams (Grey's Anatomy) recently joined more than two dozen high-profile entertainers, academics and athletes in signing a petition in support of the young Palestinian.
The prominent Americans compared Tamimi's case to that of young Black Americans who have been persecuted and killed by police in the United States.
"From Trayvon Martin to Mohammed Abu Khdeir and Khalif Browder to Ahed Tamimi – racism, state violence and mass incarceration have robbed our people of their childhoods and their futures," the open letter said, according to TeleSur.