Lakaa Kordia, a 33-year-old Palestinian activist, reported that she has experienced her fifth seizure since being released from the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in March. This seizure occurred shortly after her return home on Sunday, following her participation in a panel discussion at Riverside Church in New York.
Kordia stated in a post published on Instagram on Monday that the seizure suddenly began during prayer while she was still wearing prayer attire. She described her condition as 'frightened, exhausted, dizzy, and confused.'
The activist emphasized that she had never suffered from convulsions before ICE arrested her for exercising her right to freedom of speech and the right to protest.
Kordia arrived in the United States from occupied West Palestine in 2016 using a Palestinian Authority passport. Initially, she was a guest before transitioning to student status as she began studying English.
In March 2025, ICE agents detained Kordia after she voluntarily went to meet with immigration agents. This happened after she learned that acquaintances of hers were being interrogated and that agents had also visited her home.
During this meeting in Newark, New Jersey, on March 13, she was served with a court appearance notice, after which she was taken overnight to a facility in Texas. She was held in custody for one year and three days until an immigration judge ordered her release on March 13, 2026.
The first publicly documented seizure occurred while she was in ICE custody in February at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, and required hospitalization.
In April, Kordia told Middle East Eye that on the night she developed a fever, other women incarcerated with her begged guards to give her Ibuprofen or Tylenol. Kordia stated that their requests were ignored, and subsequently, she had a seizure. At the time, she told MEE: 'I swear, I thought I was going to die that night.'
Kordia's supporters publicly expressed concern over the inadequate medical care she received during her detention. Later, after the fever subsided, she was hospitalized.