Court releases two East Jerusalem booksellers to house arrest

A court releases two prominent Palestinian booksellers to house arrest for five days, after police detained them for two nights.

Officers raided the Educational Bookshop in East Jerusalem on Saturday and arrested its owners Ahmad and Mahmoud Muna, nephew and uncle, on allegations they sold books containing “incitement and support for terrorism.”

Police pointed to a children’s coloring book they found in the shop titled “From the River to the Sea.”

Ahmad Muna tells The Times of Israel upon his release that it was a “brutal, hard arrest” with an unclear basis. He and his uncle are barred from setting foot in the Educational Bookshop for another 20 days.

Educational Bookshop owner Ahmad Muna released to five-day house arrest after two nights in detention

He says he and his uncle Mahmoud were held in separate locations pic.twitter.com/Pj7wvUJiLv

— charlie summers (@cbsu03) February 11, 2025

The two relatives were held separately, with Ahmad detained in a police station and Mahmoud in the Russian Compound detention center.

The arrests sparked outcry from diplomats, including the British and German ambassadors to Israel, as well as a protest outside the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court during yesterday’s hearing on extending the booksellers’ detention.

The Educational Bookstore is a key part of cultural life in East Jerusalem.

Raids on Bookstore branches and the arrest of owners Mahmoud and Ahmed Muna are a disproportionate response to the concerns raised yesterday in court.

Freedom of expression is a fundamental right.

— Simon Walters (@simonwaltersuk) February 11, 2025

Law enforcement requested that the two be held in custody for a further eight days, but the court on Monday granted an extension of only one day. No charges have yet been filed.