Palestinian journalist Mohamad Hamamreh was detained a few weeks in September on accusations of allegedly insulting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, after having been tagged in a Facebook image ridiculing the Arab leader.
Reported by AP today, Al Quds TV correspondent Mamdouh Hamamreh was detained in Bethlehem by the Palestinian Intelligence Service upon his name coming up as a suspect of insulting a ‘Public Figure’ in a Facebook image he was merely tagged in depicting Abbas as a traitor.
It’s worth noting that Al Quds TV is sympathetic to the militant Islamist group Hamas, the chief rival to Abass’ Palestinian Authority according to AP. His prosecutors have set his first court date for next month.
This incident seems to be a rising trend in Middle Eastern oppression, where leaders show their fear of social platforms by having security forces monitor them consistently for possible insults and caricatures.
We’ll give you a say on this. Is this what Palestinian Authorities consider threatening? Or even wasting an Intelligence officer’s precious time in a territory like Palestine one would imagine they have other, more prudent matters, to address.
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