Israeli police have raided a Palestinian family-owned bookstore in East Jerusalem for the second time in a month. Police confiscated over 50 books and briefly arrested the bookstore owner. The bookstore, named "Educational Bookshop," is a significant literary venue in the city, selling a wide range of books discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Middle Eastern culture, further solidifying its role in the community.
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03-14, 2025Supporters of the Muna family, who run the bookstore, say it is being targeted by Israeli authorities in a suppression of speech and freedom of expression. On Tuesday morning, Israeli police arrived at the bookstore, located near the walls of Jerusalem's Old City, and arrested the owner, Imad Muna. Police seized books from the shelves and even asked Imad's wife, Najwa, for plastic bags to carry away what they claimed was "evidence," demonstrating the thoroughness of their search.
Muna's brother, Murad, stated that police did not present a search warrant when they entered the bookstore and ordered it to close. Surveillance footage shows nearly ten police officers searching the bookstore, with one armed officer standing guard on the street outside. Murad also revealed that when Najwa wanted to go to the restroom, police pointed a gun at her and loudly questioned her destination and purpose, showcasing the tense atmosphere during the raid.
Israeli police confirmed that Imad Muna was released shortly after being detained. In a statement, police said they received a report that a bookstore in Jerusalem was selling books containing inciting content. After arriving at the scene, police confiscated three books and temporarily detained a person present to verify their identity and information about the bookstore. After verification, the person was released. Police have begun reviewing the books and will decide, based on the review, whether to submit the matter to the State Attorney's Office for further investigation into the suspected sale of inciting materials.
Books allegedly confiscated and then returned included works by British street artist Banksy, American author Noam Chomsky, and Israeli historian Ilan Pappe. The three books retained by police were two volumes of journalist and cartoonist Joe Sacco's "Footnotes in Gaza" and British writer Jonathan Cook's "Israel and the Clash of Civilizations." Murad stated that they believe they know who reported them, with surveillance footage showing a man visiting the bookstore about an hour before the police arrived and browsing through "Footnotes in Gaza."
In February, Imad's brother and son, Mahmoud and Ahmed, were arrested for selling books with Palestinian themes and images and were charged with disturbing the peace. One book that raised concern was a children's coloring book titled "From the River to the Sea," a slogan associated with Palestinian resistance movements. Both were released after being detained for two nights. Ahmed described the recent raid as "heartbreaking," adding, "This time was worse than the time I was arrested. I had to see my parents being humiliated by them."
Ahmed also described the exaggerated nature of the police operation: "At first, there were two police officers, then two more came, then two plainclothes officers came, and then two more plainclothes officers came. They made a spectacle of it, blocked the road, drove in reverse, as if there was an emergency. They came from all directions, and then more and more plainclothes police officers came. In the end, there were ten people in our store." He views this as a worrying development, stating, "We live in a country where the police can do whatever they want, a country where freedom of speech is restricted, a country where the police can search bookstores and cultural institutions at will."
The first raid in February sparked strong protests from expatriates in Jerusalem, who called it an attack on freedom of speech. Many foreign diplomats crowded a small courtroom in the city to show their support for the Muna family and observe the court proceedings. The Israeli State Attorney criticized the police action in the weeks following the raid, stating that officers did not request an investigation into the alleged incitement offense before the arrest, which violated Israeli law. Local media reported that the prosecutor's office had informed the police that such incidents should not happen again, highlighting the seriousness of the matter.
