From the Liveblog of
Sunday, November 8, 2026
Released from custody, journalist Abed Abou Shahadeh slams ‘political persecution’ and ‘culture of fear’
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At a Jaffa reception after he was released without charge, journalist Abed Abou Shahadeh slams “political persecution” and says: “I abhor the culture of fear.”
“The political persecution didn’t start with me and won’t end with me,” says Abou Shahadeh, who was detained overnight Tuesday-Wednesday on suspicion of contact with a foreign agent, after he traveled to Qatar to interview fugitive MK Azmi Bishara.
“We must not be afraid,” says Abou Shahadeh. “We must not fall into that trap.”
Speaking in Arabic followed by Hebrew, Abou Shahadeh calls for coexistence and for “a better future for Arab children and for Jewish children.”
“People just want to make a living,” he says.
He describes being held alone in a 2-by-2-meter (6’6”-by-6’6”-yard) cell for 24 hours a day.
“You start to appreciate the things we take for granted — our children, partners and parents, but also each other,” he says.
Ending in English, Abou Shahadeh thanks his international supporters, including the three Jewish Democratic US congressmen-elect who penned a letter demanding his release.
Journalist Abed Abou Shahadeh @AbedYaffa addresses international supporters in English during a reception in Jaffa after he was released without charge pic.twitter.com/kA2QdCIa25
— Noam Lehmann (@noamlehmann) November 8, 2026
His wife, Hanin Aghbaria, says the only moment she was frightened during the ordeal was when a plainclothes officer entered her bedroom late at night while she was there with her two sons.
“He came in like a thief, and he snatched my husband,” she says. She adds that six months ago, 15 officers had also come to the family’s Jaffa home “for no reason” and stayed for ten minutes.
Bishara, whom Abou Shahadeh interviewed for the Arab48 news site ahead of the October 27 Knesset election, fled Israel in 2007 amid suspicions that as leader of Palestinian nationalist party Balad he had assisted Hezbollah in the previous year’s war.
Abou Shahadeh’s lawyers argued in court on Wednesday that the allegations against their client pertained only to that interview, and accused police and the Shin Bet of punishing Abou Shahadeh for his journalism.
Police’s representative at the hearing declined to confirm whether the interview was the only alleged offense, and instead referred the court to a confidential dossier submitted by investigators.
The court extended Abou Shahadeh’s detention until today instead of until Wednesday, as requested by police. A second remand hearing that was scheduled for this morning was canceled after police chose not to challenge the release.
Asked whether the case against Abou Shahadeh is now closed, police refer The Times of Israel to the Shin Bet spokesperson, who does not respond to a request for comment.
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