Israeli authorities detain and deport Scottish businesswoman after denying her entry to Palestine

A Scottish businesswoman said she was detained by Israeli authorities and deported after being denied entry to Palestine while on a visit to Palestinian partners, according to media reports Monday. Yasmina Ferrigan, the business manager of the Edinburgh-based Hadeel store, which sells Fairtrade Palestinian goods – arrived at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport on Friday. While she had been hoping to visit Palestinian partners who sell their wares through Hadeel to see the situation on the ground as well as find new producers and establish supply networks, she said she had been blocked from entering the country. She was detained and accused of being a terrorist and then deported. "I was detained and I was held in a detention center in immigration for five hours at least, and it was the worst, most vile experience ever," the South African-born activist, who has lived in Scotland for the last 25 years, was quoted by Scottish daily The National as saying. "They have no respect for human life. They have no respect for dignity. They accused me of being a Hamas supporter and a Hamas terrorist, and they accused me of being a Palestine Action member," she said. Ferrigan added that she was also told that she should have been arrested a long time ago and that "I should not exist, I should be eliminated, and that they are watching me." "It's a systematic breakdown and crippling of the Palestinian economy. They knew full well I was going as a Hadeel employee, as well as going for trade with Palestinian communities in occupied territories, and they still did not want to let me in."