Jerusalem’s Educational Bookshop faced a second police raid this month, leading to the arrest of Imad Muna, the older brother of co-owner Mahmoud Muna, who also manages the establishment. This latest incident follows a previous raid in February, during which several books—particularly those relating to the Israel-Palestine conflict—were confiscated.

Mahmoud, who co-established the shop with his nephew Ahmad, had intended to attend the London Book Fair to discuss the challenges of “Publishing Responsibly in Times of Conflict”. However, due to the recent developments, he has opted to participate remotely.

Background and Initial Arrest

The first raid took place on February 9, 2025, where both Mahmoud and Ahmad were detained. Initially charged with “inciting and supporting terrorism,” the charges were later downgraded to “disturbing the public order” during their interrogation. They were ultimately released without any formal charges by February 11.

Community Reactions

The recent escalation has provoked strong reactions from various stakeholders in the literary and publishing sectors. Andrew Franklin, the founder of Profile Books and a trustee for Index on Censorship, noted the troubling nature of arrests purely for selling books. He remarked, “It is unbearable that people are being arrested simply for selling books. Freedom of speech is under threat everywhere, nowhere more so than Israel.”

Lynn Gaspard of Saqi Books expressed dismay at the second raid and the lack of clarity regarding the confiscation of more books. “With no explanation, more books have been confiscated and more distress has been caused to the Muna family, simply for doing their job,” she said. “Every day we are seeing more booksellers, librarians, publishers and writers censored in almost every country around the world—this feels particularly poignant during the London Book Fair. The industry must rally to protect the freedom to read, which means the freedom to run a bookshop. Bookselling is not a crime.”

Current Status

As of the latest updates, Israeli police have not publicly commented on the recent arrests. However, reports from Haaretz indicate that Imad has since been released following his arrest.