A Palestinian woman who has been held in an immigration jail for nearly a year after attending a protest in New York City said she suffered a seizure after fainting and hitting her head last week, an episode she linked to filthy and inhumane conditions inside the privately run detention facility.
Leqaa Kordia, 33, was hospitalized for three days following the seizure, which she said was the first of her life. She has since returned to the Prairieland Detention Facility in Texas, where she has been held since March.
In a statement released through her lawyers, Kordia detailed her grim experience, stating that she was shackled throughout her hospitalization, prevented from contacting family or meeting with lawyers.
“For three days in the emergency room, my hands and legs were weighed down by heavy chains as they drew my blood and gave me medications,” Kordia recounted. “I felt like an animal. My hands are still full of marks from the heavy metal.”
Doctors indicated her seizure could be attributed to poor sleep, inadequate nutrition, and severe stress. Kordia, a devout Muslim, previously lost 49 pounds in detention, particularly due to being deprived of meals compliant with her religious practices.
“I’ve been here for 11 months, and the food is so bad it makes me sick,” Kordia expressed in her statement. “At Prairieland, your daily life—whether you can access the food or medicine you need or even have a good night’s sleep—is controlled by the private, for-profit business that runs this facility.”
Despite previously being cleared for release by an immigration judge, Kordia remains trapped in extended legal disputes as the government continuously challenges rulings in her favor. Officials have accused her of overstaying her visa and scrutinized her financial support for relatives in the Middle East, claiming it was connected to questionable activities.
In her heart-wrenching statement, Kordia stated, “The best medicine for me and everyone else here is our freedom.”
