Israeli forces detain Palestinian Jerusalem-based journalist Latifeh Abdellatif
Israeli forces on Sunday detained prominent Palestinian journalist Latifeh Abdellatif after raiding her home at the Damascus gate in occupied Jerusalem’s Old City.
According to the official Jerusalem governate’s X account, Abdellatif’s detention was further extended by an Israeli court on Monday, where she was accused of “incitement” online and “publishing inflammatory content”.
Abdellatif is a freelance journalist who has contibuted to Middle East Eye and several other news platforms.
Abdellatif has previously been the subject of crackdown by Israeli forces.
In late May 2021, she was beaten, pepper-sprayed and had her headscarf forcibly removed by Israeli forces while she was filming the detention of a young boy in occupied East Jerusalem.
Covering the nationwide Palestinian general strike at the Old City’s Damascus Gate, Abdellatif reported seeing a child being detained by Israeli forces. His father and other Palestinians nearby tried to stop the detention, which sparked a confrontation.
Abdellatif then tried to film the incident, but was pushed by Israeli officers, despite making it clear to them that she was a reporter.
“I’m a journalist, I’m a journalist,” Abdellatif repeated.
Israeli forces attacked MEE correspondent Latifeh Abdellatif whilst she was covering the nationwide Palestinian general strike in Jerusalem’s Old City.
Abdellatif was beaten, pepper-sprayed and had her headscarf removed as she was reporting the detention of a young boy pic.twitter.com/Awzthvtwue
— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) May 18, 2021
The officers ignored her and continued to push her back, then pulled down her hijab and struck her with a baton on her knee.
Palestinians at the scene stepped in to protect Abdellatif, scuffling with the Israeli forces. A number of them were arrested as a result.
At the time, Palestinians across the political divide began a nationwide general strike protesting Israel’s bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip.
The strike was aimed at disrupting all economic and commercial establishments in Jerusalem, the occupied West Bank, Gaza and Palestinian communities inside Israel.
The May 2021 assault left 256 Palestinians dead and thousands wounded, as well as damaging over 50,000 homes and destroying key infrastructure.
It also came amid plans to forcibly displace residents of the Palestinian neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah in occupied East Jerusalem, and after days of attacks at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. Such uprooting remains ongoing today, as campaigns to remove Palestinians in the West Bank have become rampant.
