By Sara Monetta
Dozens of Arab citizens of Israel have been arrested for their social media posts about the war in Gaza.
Among them is the well-known singer and influencer from Nazareth, Dalal Abu Amneh, who was detained in police custody for two days, before being released on bail on Wednesday. She is now under house arrest until Monday.
According to his lawyer, Abee Bakerthe singer was accused of “disruptive behavior” by police officers, who say his posts may incite violence among his followers.
The message that attracted the attention of the police was an image of the Palestinian flag with the Arabic motto: “There is no victor but God.” Baker notes that the singer, who is well known in the Arab world for her songs about Palestinian heritage, was expressing religious sentiment.
Israeli authorities interpreted the singer’s post as a call to arms for Palestinians.
“Zero tolerance”
Since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas, The police in Israel have adopted what they call a “zero tolerance policy” towards social media activities that express support for Hamas, an Islamist group that advocates the destruction of Israel and has been designated a terrorist group by Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, and many other countries.
Abu Amneh is one of dozens of Arab citizens of Israel who have been arrested in connection with their online posts about the war.
Many others have been suspended or fired from their job, or face disciplinary measures in their universities.
Arab-Israelis (many of whom prefer to be called Palestinian citizens of Israel) make up one-fifth of the country’s population.
Since the Hamas attack on October 7, police say they have investigated and detained more than 100 people for their activities on social networks.
In Jerusalem alone, 63 were arrested and interrogated.
“Anyone who incites against the State of Israel, its government symbols, elected officials, military and police personnel, should know that the Israel Police will respond firmly and without leniency,” said Israel Police Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai. in a meeting with senior leaders this week.
Adalah, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, believes the number of detainees is higher, given that more arrests have been made recently.
By comparison, during the Israel-Gaza conflict in May 2021, only 16 people – 15 of whom were Arabs – were charged with inciting violence, according to a report published by Adalah.
Human rights activists fear that this increase in arrests is due to the police adopting a broader interpretation of what constitutes inciting violence.
In the Bedouin city of Rahat, for example, the police detained a former mayoral candidate, Dr. Amer al-Huzail, who shared on the networks a map of the Gaza Strip with an analysis of possible scenarios of a ground incursion by part of the Israeli forces. This led to him being accused of aiding the enemy in times of war.
Students
But even when criminal charges are not filed, some people in Israel still suffer serious consequences for their online activity.
Lawyers working for Adalah claim to have received more than 40 cases of Israeli Arab workers who were suspended or fired from their jobs overnight.
“Sometimes people see their source of income threatened simply for liking a post,” says Salam Irsheid, a lawyer for the organization.
“We even have the case of a worker who is at risk of being fired for liking a news story about the situation in Gaza on social media.”
Arab students in Israel are also facing disciplinary measures at their universities.
Last week, Ariel Porat, president of Tel Aviv University, said a group of students were singled out for expressing “support for Hamas atrocities.”
“We are going to be very strict with this handful of students,” he wrote in a statement on the university’s website, “and when we believe the offense is criminal in nature, we will report them to the police. “We will act quickly, as required in this sensitive situation, but we will not deny any student the right to a fair investigation.”
Lawyers for Adalah say they have received complaints from 83 students who have been suspended from their schools across the country and, in some cases, told to leave their accommodation on short notice.
“None of the cases have to do with actions, demonstrations or participation in illegal things. They are all linked to social media posts,” says Dr. Hassan Jabareen, CEO of Adalah.
“More than 90% of the posts are clearly against the war, against Israel’s actions in Gaza, and support the victims of the war in Gaza,” he adds.
“10% of the publications fall into a gray area that can be interpreted as indirect support for Hamas actions against civilians.”
“Under normal circumstances, they would not be interpreted that way, but now Israel tends to interpret these messages in the most severe way.”
Critical Jewish voices
Public outrage over the Hamas attack, which killed more than 1,400 people, most of them civilians in areas near the Gaza Strip, has also generated anger against Israeli Jewish voices calling for a decrease in violence.
Last Sunday, a prominent left-wing ultra-Orthodox Jewish journalist, Israel Fey, had to be escorted by police from his home in Tel Aviv for his own protection.
A group of protesters had gathered in front of his building and threw flares at his apartment after he posted a video online in which he prayed for civilians in Gaza.
And on Wednesday, Ofer Cassif, a Jewish lawmaker from the Arab-led Hadash-Taal alliance, was suspended from the Israeli Parliament for 45 days after he strongly condemned the bombing of Gaza.
In his most recent posts on the X network, formerly known as Twitter, he criticized the police who, he said, had not intervened quickly in Frey’s defense.
“Armed police forces are sent to arrest anyone who shows even an ounce of empathy for the massacres in Gaza,” he wrote. “But the police are not interested in protecting a left-wing journalist whose life is in danger.”
