The Middle East Forum (MEF) has denounced the detention and forced deportation of MEF fellow Amine Ayoub by Cuban authorities, calling it an arbitrary act of harassment against a journalist who was targeted because of Israeli visa stamps in his passport.
Ayoub, a Moroccan journalist and a frequent writer for Israel National News - Arutz Sheva, was detained for 32 hours at Havana’s José Martí International Airport while en route to the Bahamas to attend a family reunion. During his confinement, he was denied food and water, subjected to lengthy interrogations focused on Israeli stamps in his travel documents, and placed under strict surveillance.
According to Ayoub, Cuban officials seized his phone under the pretext of checking reservations, prevented him from continuing his travel without explanation, and confined him to a guarded holding room. He was escorted even to the bathroom and ultimately placed on a deportation flight to Morocco under the personal supervision of Havana’s chief of police.
“This is not an isolated case but part of Cuba’s long-standing hostility toward Israel and those connected to it,” the MEF said in a statement, noting that Cuba severed ties with Israel in 1973 and has since aligned itself with Palestinian terror organizations, Iran, and Hezbollah. Cuban officials have repeatedly condemned Israeli military operations, accusing the Jewish state of “genocide,” while backing international efforts to prosecute Israeli leaders.
MEF Executive Director Gregg Roman condemned the treatment of Ayoub, stating: “The Cuban regime’s abuse of Amine Ayoub exposes its authoritarian nature and its willingness to intimidate advocates for truth and democracy. This deliberate attempt to avoid documentation of his detention shows the regime’s intent to evade accountability.”
Roman further described Cuba’s actions as evidence of “the Tehran-Havana axis of repression,” saying that Ayoub’s ordeal highlights how far Cuban authorities will go in targeting individuals for connections to Israel.
The MEF called on democratic governments, human rights organizations, and press freedom advocates to denounce Cuba’s actions and hold the regime accountable for what it described as a violation of international norms and human rights.