Israel police detain U.S. law professor in West Bank

JERUSALEM — An American law professor was detained by Israeli police for allegedly trying to block Israeli troops in a West Bank village slated for demolition, his Israeli lawyer said Saturday.

Frank Romano, 66, is being held at a lockup in Jerusalem and is to appear before an Israeli military court Monday, said attorney Gaby Lasky.

Romano, who reportedly also has French citizenship, was detained Friday in the embattled village of Khan al-Ahmar, along with two Palestinian activists. Romano stood in front of heavy equipment being used to clear barriers that had been set up to slow demolition, witnesses said.

Romano’s LinkedIn page says that he teaches law, literature, history and philosophy at the Universite Paris Ouest Nanterre La Defense in France, and that he practices law in the U.S. and France.