The State Department confirmed on Thursday that the 13-year-old girl who was stabbed to death while sleeping in her bed in the West Bank was a U.S. citizen. The girl, identified by the State Department as Hallel Yaffa Ariel, held dual citizenship and her uncle lives in New York. On Thursday a 17-year-old Palestinian climbed the fence to the settlement where the girl lived with her family and stabbed her multiple times. She later died from her injuries.

State Department spokesperson John Kirby condemned the attack on Twitter:

We condemn the unconscionable terrorist attack in the West Bank where a 13-yr-old girl was stabbed to death at home https://t.co/jTVHzqXdKk

— John Kirby (@statedeptspox) June 30, 2016

In a press release issued on the State Department’s website, Kirby wrote:

We condemn in the strongest possible terms the outrageous terrorist attack this morning in the West Bank where a 13-year-old girl, Hallel Ariel, was stabbed to death in her home. This brutal act of terrorism is simply unconscionable.

The teenager who stabbed the girl fled the scene but was then shot and killed by security guards. This was only one of many violent attacks that have recently struck the city of Hebron in the West Bank. According to ABC, 33 Israelis, 200 Palestinians, and two American tourists have been killed in stabbings, shootings, and vehicular attacks in the past nine months.

An Israeli journalist posted a video clip from the girl’s funeral, showing hundreds of supporters.

Hundreds gathered and singing during the burial of Hallel Yaffa Ariel in the Jewish cemetery in Hebron. pic.twitter.com/ASB74x6c3X

— Judah Ari Gross (@JudahAriGross) June 30, 2016

“What makes someone slit the throat of a child? It’s not the quest for peace. It’s the mind flooded with hate and incitement, an ideology that says this child is not a human being,” Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a Facebook post . He went on to call the deed an act of terrorism that can’t be tolerated:

We will always fight the terrorists. We will fight their despatchers; we will fight the inciters; we will fight the sponsors. You do battle with terrorism by fighting the terrorists and those who back them.

Hebron is the home of many hundred Jewish settlers who live in a small and tightly guarded area surrounded by over 200,000 Palestinians. The slow–or nonexistent–progress in peace talks between the two nations, bad leadership, and instigation by the media are all named as reasons for consistently high tensions in the region.

In June, world leaders met in France to discuss how to move forward with the peace negotiations. At the meeting, world leaders planned an international conference that is to be held before the end of the year. But as violence continues to flare up in the West Bank, any sort of peace agreement between Palestinians and Israelis remains a far off goal.

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post State Department: Israeli Girl Stabbed to Death in West Bank Was a U.S. Citizen appeared first on Law Street.

When picking a destination to travel to, most tourists like to factor weather, culture, and affordability into their trip planning, However on the off chance you’re an expecting mother there may be an even bigger deciding factor when choosing where to travel overseas–dual citizenship. Maternity tourism is hardly a new concept, but the recent arrest of a California lawyer by federal agents in connection with a “maternity hotels” investigation has this shady method of gaining citizenship garnering new found attention.

Federal ‘maternity tourism’ case grows with arrest of Irvine, CA attorney http://t.co/JhgR1zY2Uq @eopiniontv pic.twitter.com/qxhBmy8DJG

— Jaoana Dean (@thejaoana) May 19, 2015

According to the LA Times, federal agents arrested 38-year-old immigration attorney Ken Zhiyi Liang Friday and charged him with attempted witness tampering after he allegedly attempted to help a Chinese woman flee the U.S. after she was designated a material witness in an investigation into the illegal immigration of pregnant women.

Maternity tourism involves pregnant women obtaining tourist visas to another country in order for their child to be born a citizen there. In the United States, the Fourteenth Amendment grants unconditional citizenship to any person born on U.S. soil, making it a popular destination for this type of travel. Canada and Hong Kong are also popular destinations because of the former’s healthcare system and the latter’s “right of abode” awarded to its citizens. China’s one-child policy is also another reason for some of its pregnant nationals to seek maternity tourism as a method to circumvent the restrictive rule.

According to the LA Times, investigators in Southern California had been raiding properties suspected to be associated with alleged maternity tourism operators assisting pregnant Chinese women. After one of these raids, authorities named several people as material witnesses in the case, which forbade them from leaving the country. That’s where Liang comes in. Four of these witness hired him to represent them, but authorities believe he was also hired to help them flee the country. One married couple he represented successfully escaped back to China, but another witness was caught at LAX attempting to flee days later, which set off alarm bells for investigators.

The woman who was caught claims she had paid Liang $6,000 for the job and even had proof of their dealings, which she gave to authorities. The LA Times reported that officials in court filings claimed,

She made a video and audio recordings of several telephone and in-person conversations with Liange, in which he pressed her for payment and stressed the need to keep his involvement a secret.

Among other promises, Liang told the woman that for an additional charge, he could arrange with associates to get her aboard a flight to China without any immigration paperwork.

According to Reuters, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison if convicted at trial. It’s important that the safety of these expecting women is ensured, however investigators’ main goal is to to thwart these kinds of schemes which take advantage of the United States’ immigration policies.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post LA Lawyer Arrested Over This Popular Immigration Scheme appeared first on Law Street.