Index on Censorship is alarmed by the arrest and ongoing detention of author Mahmoud Muna, owner and bookseller of Jerusalem’s Educational Bookshop. The Educational Bookshop specialises in Arabic and English language books on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the history of Jerusalem.
Mahmoud and his nephew Ahmad Muna were arrested in the bookshop by undercover Israeli police on the afternoon of Sunday, 9 February 2025. According to their family, dozens of books were confiscated, including all books that had the words “Palestine” or “Palestinian” in the title and that contained images of the Palestinian flag. Mahmoud and Ahmad were arrested on the charge of “inciting and supporting terrorism”, but the charge was reportedly changed to “disturbing the public order” during their interrogation. Ahmad Muna has since been released.
The arrests are part of broader attacks to artistic freedoms within both Israel and the Palestinian territories. Last year, Index covered the blocking of a film screening in Haifa.
The Educational Bookshop is a well-known, family-owned chain that has operated for over four decades. It sells a wide collection of books by Palestinian, Israeli and international authors and has a cafe attached to one of the branches that hosts regular literary events. Mahmoud Ahmad is also a writer and active in cultural initiatives across Palestine. In 2022, he published the first Arabic edition of the literary magazine, Granta.
Jemimah Steinfeld, CEO of Index on Censorship, said:
“Book banning has no place in a democracy and these actions don’t even stop there. The two men, Mahmoud Muna and Ahmad Muna, are remarkable by all accounts and should never have been put through this ordeal. Their arrests were another example of how authorities in Israel today are trying to silence the speech of Palestinians and the speech of those who challenge government lines more broadly. Freedom to read is not a luxury that can be given to those whose views you agree with only. It’s an essential part of free speech and it cannot happen if booksellers are unable to carry out their work safely, without fear of reprisal.”
Andrew Franklin, Profile books founder and trustee of Index on Censorship, said:
“Books are a bulwark of freedom. When they are banned, dark things follow. So for a bookshop to be raided, books seized by the police and the booksellers arrested is shocking and appalling. It speaks of grim repression and echoes the darkest days of book seizures and book burning.
“I know Mahmoud well and admire him greatly. Bookselling is never an easy profession and it’s really challenging under occupation. Mahmoud’s shops are a haven of ideas, stories and imagination in a bleak place. He’s a quiet hero.”
For press enquiries, contact: Jemimah Steinfeld at [email protected]
