A New Yorker flying to Israel ran into extra security screenings and delays flying to Israel and she says that, as a Palestinian, she’s a victim of the Jewish state. Is she?
Noor Fawaz was booked through Chase travel to fly El Al from New York to Tel Aviv. El Al’s security processes are more rigorous and extreme than most airlines. They profile! Ms. Fawaz got extra questioning, and this was acknowledged to her.
Her laptop got flagged for explosives during screening and she was told it would have to travel separately. She was searched comprehensively. Her shoes alarmed for explosives, and El Al refused her boarding. She got rebooked onto United.
Traveling on United she went through extensive security, including from TSA. Once on board – including with her laptop – the flight was fine. However she says she was questioned for two hours on arrival before being allowed into the country.
I was denied boarding on @EL_AL_ISRAEL because they claimed that I was a “security risk.” Here is a glimpse of what it’s like to travel to Israel as a Palestinian, even if you’re an American. It all started when I went to go drop off my bags at the counter at EWR. pic.twitter.com/1W9X9fm3pX
— Noor | نور (@nfwazwaz) July 18, 2023
So was this all El Al’s doing? No, she complained also about United and about her screening from TSA, which she blames on Israel.
The @united employee was barely giving me any information about what was happening. No one was explaining what was going on. He threatened that I could be denied boarding my flight for recording a video. Too bad. pic.twitter.com/ajEUrp4oah
— Noor | نور (@nfwazwaz) July 18, 2023
So I did another extensive screening. Another pat down. Head to toe. Swabbed all my belongings. Socks and shoes. Of course, everything was clear. But wait … I was told I had to go thru Israel’s security AGAIN! pic.twitter.com/jJWVKWdkD3
— Noor | نور (@nfwazwaz) July 18, 2023
And obviously everything was CLEAR. I did not have explosives in my laptop or shoes! But still, I was given a new boarding pass with the letters “SSSS” written multiple times and highlighted in bright yellow. I was treated like a criminal on the loose. LOL at the TSA Pre check. pic.twitter.com/4mMmJrxAYn
— Noor | نور (@nfwazwaz) July 18, 2023
She also complains about dealing with Chase Travel.
The @Chase rep called @EL_AL_ISRAEL and there was a note in the system that I was denied boarding at EWR bc I was a “security risk.” They clearly don’t want me to fly their airlines and I don’t want to either! Phone was hung abruptly, and without any resolution. Thanks @Chase pic.twitter.com/EkvhuiOjJ4
— Noor | نور (@nfwazwaz) July 18, 2023
This generated a ton of sympathy online except… none of what she went through may have had anything to do with her being Palestinian, and everything to do with her public calls for… the destruction of Israel. At the hands of terrorists.
Here’s the thing. Despite this, she was allowed to enter Israel. The U.S. would have never been so open to a non-citizen entering the country who had posted to social media advocating war and terrorism against the country. Customs and Border Protection would have arranged for her rendition, and all that was required to enter Israel was extra security. Not fun!
She’s gone to Israel before, and based on the six weeks since this transpired she doesn’t appear to have actually been a terrorist, so Israel’s ultimate judgment was right. But they wanted to be sure! There’s certainly no absolute right for her to enter in any case.
Now, I suspect that anyone booking their trip through Chase travel is a Chase rewards customer. An Iranian operative or member of al Qaeda isn’t accumulating Ultimate Rewards points as the key linchpin of their plot. And I do feel for her, having to address ticket changes after booking through a third party like Chase. You can get value for your points but heaven forbid you have their agents as a middle person between you and the airline when something goes wrong.
(HT: Live and Let’s Fly)
“The U.S. would have never been so open to a non-citizen entering the country who had posted to social media advocating war and terrorism against the country.”
Of course in America such people can just sneak across the southern border. ♂️
Good job by Israeli security.
@William, completely irrelevant point, this post was about trying to enter the country by air. Might be relevant if she was trying to sneak into Israel overland from Jordan or Egypt….but she wasn’t
I fail to see where she calls for the destruction of Israel as you claim. I’m not saying she was singled out because she was Palestinian–impossible to say without more context/seeing who else got SSSS–but I also don’t see anything to suggest she “deserved it”. The article linked in the community notes on the tweet doesn’t add anything, and presents an even more biased view of events than yours. Imagine if the script was flipped and a majority Arab state was treating Jews the way Israel treats Palestinians–you would be shouting from the rooftops in support of the resistance.
This is a shameful piece of writing–shame on you. You’ve lost a longtime reader.
@William- you missed the opportunity to school “@rightwing William” that terrorists also use our northern border to enter the US. But Trumpers only hate those South of the US.
@tom Unlike the US, Israel has secure land borders. You don’t see or hear about illegal border crossings into Israel. After all, a country without borders is not a country.
Clearly accepting racism/apartheid, stick to actual travel news.
If she hates Israel so much, why is she going there? Meanwhile, all the terrorists in the world know that all they have to do is fly into Mexico or Central America and walk across the U.S. border because the clown in the white house is a fool.
I think she gave it away in her first tweet, and it has nothing to do with her anti Isreal reputation, the first question the Israeli security ask is who packed your bags? It’s common knowledge the regardless who you are, if you didn’t pack you bags yourself your opening yourself to hell!! And you’ll get the same treatment on any airline going to Israel, I don’t see anyone having a different experience if you make this crucial mistake.
If you make radical statements online then you should be subjected to every additional level of security and scrutiny available. If I had my say you would not be flying at all, EVER.
The last thing we need in our sky’s is someone who is OK with terrorism.
WTF? Her computer and shoes tested positive for explosives and she got on a United flight.
Again WTF?!? She should have been arrested on the spot and not allowed to fly
You just lost a reader. Forever.
Ignorant racist
One of the many stupid people who post to the online social media. Growing up, if I said something stupid, my Grandfather would say, “Son, you have a case of “foot in mouth disease”. When I (politely!!) corrected him, “Pop, you mean hoof in mouth disease?” He’d reply, “No son, you just put your foot in your mouth, right up to the hip.” OUCH! So, when this clown woman shoots her mouth off on the stupid social media platforms…she gets exactly what she deserves. Though attributed to many people from the Bible, to Abraham Lincoln and Mark Twain, “It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it.” As a columnist at the New York Post said of Tina Turner, “Tina Turner lived in a world of pain but never asked for pity…while to-day’s poor-me pampered celebrities and Montecito moaners play the victim.” The “Montecito moaners” is an homage to Harry and MEgan.
SSSS is Secondary Security Screening Selection
She clearly earned that designation
Who knew a Palestinian could be so cute! No wonder she was held up by male security. Shades of Larry David and his Palestinian chicken lover…
The extra security screening happens to everyone. El Al going to Israel can be a PITA.
I have had my laptop charger and a devotional book about being a dad shipped home from Israel because they thought there was some concern about it.
At the end of the day, they do that to keep Noor, you, me and everyone else safe. It isn’t fun but deal with it.
If she flew United, she should be glad she didn’t have a guitar.
She’s a propogandist like many other in the radical left – arab nationalist – radical islam alliance (what an odd bunch of people).
It’s all they know to do, really.
Since when is calling to resist a racist and illegal occupation the same as calling for the destruction of Israel? Very disappointing. You should educate yourself about this complex issue before making blanket ignorant statements.
Gary, from the three tweets of hers you provided, it looks more like she is calling for the freedom of Palestine than the destruction of Israel.
@Ray
Let’s stop being woke for a moment. If someone wished to sneak into the US it would be ten times easier to get in by the southern border than to go through Canada. Not only is the Canada border more secure, it is far harder to get to Canada than Mexico.
@Derek – she explicitly calls for violence, supporting the “third intifada”
A terrorist supporter should never be allowed into any country where life is valued. Someone like that monster should be kept out of Israel completely regardless of what airline she is flying on.
My friend got detained and questioned for over an hour in Isreal because he was a flying alone on a one way ticket. He’s Jewish. She’s no victim.
Think this was out of the blue or a setup?
It would be easy enough–have someone handle some explosives then handle her stuff. Shows up on the detector but there’s nothing to find.
Or inadvertently, she’s been around people who deal with explosives. I recall reading about one–woman, diaper bag pings as C4. That’s not one of the ambiguous ones, C4 definitely means boom. No bomb, no connection to explosives–but her husband does military EOD.
the difference between a terrorist and a freedom fighter is pretty much a matter of which side you are on.
For a lot of people if a Ukrainian resists invasion, they are proud freedom fighters. If a Palestinian does it, they are terrorists. And then when we get to the conflicts in Western or Central Africa, or the Saudi/Yemen situation – we seem very unsure as to who to label as the terrorist so we basically just ignore them completely.
@Gary an intifada is NOT violent by definition. The second intifada very clearly started out with non-violent protests and then turned violent. It’s just factually wrong to say that she explicitly called for violence. Maybe she is and maybe she isn’t, but we cannot know that from her statements.
More broadly – Israel is free to do what it feels is appropriate. We are free to choose whether to go there or not. Most of us cannot complain and should shut up and deal. But there’s a caveat – a Palestinian has no option if they’re trying to visit their own country/territory. That’s what makes this case interesting.
Thank goodness in our holier than thou country we were completely peaceful in gaining our independence and right to self-governance (after we obliterated those who were previously here).
I stand with Gary. Though, I do not think “hassled” is the best word. Enhanced security screening.
What did she expose her items to triggering a response? Testing the security and/or trying to cry wolf for media attention?
Maybe she’s jealous of a couple of US Congresswomen that are denied entry to Israel due to the rapid anti-Semitism and fundraising efforts for terrorist-linked groups, and support of Israel’s destruction, and, their political support by radicalized Islamists.
@Alan: “If she hates Israel so much, why is she going there?”- Because her relatives are in Jerusalem apparently, which is inside the State of Israel- so how else would she visit her family? 1.3 million or so Palestinians live within Israel so of course they travel through TLV just like every other citizen and their relatives.
Clearly her online activities got her extra attention from Israeli security, and clearly some of the screenings and alerts were designed to slow her down or get her off the flight. What I don’t understand is, if they deemed her enough of a security risk to deny being allowed to fly on the national carrier, why was she allowed entry into the country at all? And if she wasn’t then why hassle her so much?
Israeli and El Al security are generally pretty good at what they do (which is why many Israelis will not fly other airlines) but I’m sure a lot of it is still based on “hunches” and other subjective elements and it can get pretty invasive. I recall when I was a long haired kid and I was returning home from a visit to a kibbutz in Israel, I went to take a piss at the airport before going through security. There was a guy at the next urinal looking left and right and creeping me out a little- thought he was having a peek at my junk. I looked sideways at him nervously and that was enough for him to whip out a badge and pull me in for questioning- after I had a chance to zip up my pants.
In short, it’s complicated and subjective and yes some Palestinians do get some extra scrutiny- though it sounds like hers was based on more than a hunch or someone looking sideways.
It’s a shame she was hassled in the end if there was nothing to it more than provocative online posts- but her whining about how horrible it was that her laptop was taken away and that she got SSSS. I get that on about 25% of my flights for one reason or another.
@Not Lucky – 2014’s 3rd intifida was violent. She supported it. At a minimum it seems reasonable to apply extra scrutiny to her admissibility. Saying “an intifada is NOT violent by definition” is simply not accurate. (You acknowledge that the 2nd intifada was violent as well.)
@ Gary
Intifada means to resist. Literally it means “shaking off”. How does that mean destruction of Isreal. I believe most people accept that Isreal is there to stay. If you don’t, that just means you don’t understand reality. But an occupation is an occupation, and that can be and will likely be always resisted.
And resistance by occupied people is actually considered a human right under universal human rights.
No one knows what actually happened to her, so I think jumping to conclusions is a waste of time. But to not understand actual words is simply being lazy.
Those are hardly calls for the “destruction of Israel,” they’re perfectly mainstream opinions on the validity of Israel’s claim to the land. And with regard to the occupation of Gaza, I don’t think I understand why an occupied territory wouldn’t be entitled to defend itself? The occupation itself is violent, by design, to begin with.
Lost another longtime reader and follower. Stick to travel Jeff. Don’t get into politics. Keep your pro-Israel opinions to yourself.
But since you went into politics, here are a few facts:
1. Israel keeps 5 million Palestinians under military occupation,
2. Israel is currently being investigated by the Intl Criminal Court and Intl Court for Justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
2. Israel has been labeled an apartheid by the UN, Amnesty Intl, Human Rights Watch, B’Tselem and many others.
Israel is known to check the backgrounds of people entering and look at their social media. And then talk to them in detail. Clearly what happened here. What is the problem?
Ddin’t realize that Gary was an Islamophobe. She’s a terrorist because she wants to free her land from an occupation? Sounds like I can go to Gary’s house, bust in, kick him out, and sleep on his sofa.
When he wants back in, I can shoot him. If he tries to stop me, he’ll be a terrorist.
I guess as long as people also would support this kind of extra scrutiny for anyone who has tweeted support for Ukraine fighting back against occupation, then it’s all good.
Surprising she did not jump the line at the UN to complain…
Israel is a sovereign nation; their is no entity known as Palestine.
Israel’s security is admired and acknowledged as fool proof, and must be, given the ongoing, active threats to its citizens. However, to thwart these security efforts, terrorists recruit children and young women to murder Israeli citizens. Frankly, given the gunpowder substance on her possessions and her ranting against Israel in her computer, I would have required her to fly instead into Amman and take a bus across the Allenby Bridge where she could have been more thoroughly searched and her story vetted.
FYI-in 1984 when I was flying back to the USA from TLV, I was detained in a room and interviewed for hours. Why? Because my passport showed I had been in Red China in 1982 (an enemy of Israel and supplier of arms to belligerents of Israel in the Middle East). As well, I had changed my ticketing from El Al to Swissair, which made me look suspicious to security. Eventually, I was driven out to the tarmac where my A340 and crew impatiently waited for me.
All the politics aside, her shoes TESTED FOR EXPLOSIVES. Whether or not she had explosives, had a boyfriend with explosives, walked through some residual explosive stuff on the street, her shoes TESTED POSITIVE FOR EXPLOSIVES. Regardless of what she posted online or said about Israel, her shoes TESTED FOR EXPLOSIVES.
If Jesus Christ comes through security and his sandals test positive for explosives — he’s getting SSSS.
My last trip, I saw an older couple getting SSSS because they had a bag of some special herbal flour mix for a birthday cake. They didn’t whine. They didn’t complain. They didn’t tweet. They just went along with it and laughed when it was over.
This story won’t get the global media attention it deserves because it doesn’t fit the red-green alliance (Socialist/Communist -Radicalized Islamist).
“Israeli Arab activist stands firm after attack on flight”
(August 31, 2023 / JNS)
A prominent Israeli-Arab social media activist who was accosted on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv for his unabashedly pro-Israel posts said Wednesday that the assault only strengthened his views, and that he will not be deterred from speaking out.
Yoseph Haddad, 38, and his family were verbally and physically assaulted on Friday by two Arab passengers after boarding a FlyDubai flight to Tel Aviv from the United Arab Emirates.
https://www.jns.org/israel-news/yoseph-haddad/23/8/31/314703/
@Steven:
> Since when is calling to resist a racist and illegal occupation the same as calling for the destruction of Israel? Very disappointing. You should educate yourself about this complex issue before making blanket ignorant statements.
Since the people she’s supporting are calling for the destruction of Israel. They claim they’re only after the occupied territories–but in Arabic (not in English!) they say Israel is the occupied territory.
@Not Lucky:
> the difference between a terrorist and a freedom fighter is pretty much a matter of which side you are on.
While the word “terrorism” gets thrown around improperly it’s usually quite easy to tell them apart. Terrorists shoot at civilians, freedom fighters shoot at military/government.
@Shadab Khan:
> Intifada means to resist. Literally it means “shaking off”. How does that mean destruction of Isreal. I believe most people accept that Isreal is there to stay. If you don’t, that just means you don’t understand reality.
Because they have defined it as war. It’s a death penalty offense to even try to settle for less than the destruction of Israel.
@John Samalca:
> Ddin’t realize that Gary was an Islamophobe. She’s a terrorist because she wants to free her land from an occupation? Sounds like I can go to Gary’s house, bust in, kick him out, and sleep on his sofa.
She supports terrorists.
@Chris@Oak:
> This story won’t get the global media attention it deserves because it doesn’t fit the red-green alliance (Socialist/Communist -Radicalized Islamist).
It won’t get the attention because there are roughly 100x more Muslims than Jews. People tend to turn away from news that they disagree with and telling the truth will tend to cause problems for your news organization reporting from Jihadist areas. You don’t need any vast conspiracy in the news, just competition for eyeballs.
There is no difference between Russia invading Ukraine and Israel invading Palestine. Both say it is for the security of their nation. If you are okay with Ukraine resisting then you gotta be okay with Palestine resisting…..if both are not the same in your mind, then you are a racist!
Disappointed to see the words “And deserved it!” I don’t believe one can serve justice – as in stating a verdict like this – without a comprehensive, thorough and unbiased analysis of ALL facts and testimonials. Does any social media post meet this criterion? If not, then I think we should simply report the facts and let the reader draw their own conclusions.
There is no such thing as a “palestinian” just Arab squatters on Jewish land.
Let’s hope bibi has a plan to finally rid Israel of that fifth column.
@Steve “Israel invading Palestine” boy that’s a bit acontextual, eh?
Can we get back to keeping the airlines on their toes? Isn’t that the reason why we joined this group? Besides, is it really fair or even appropriate to judge our fellow travelers without having all the facts and fully understanding them in an unbiased way? May I suggest we get back to working together to make this world a better place.
Thank you