Two eastern Jerusalem residents have been arrested for allegedly selling books containing Palestinian nationalist incitement, including a children’s coloring book titled, “From the River to the Sea,” the Israel Police said on Monday.
שוטרי מחוז ירושלים עצרו שני תושבי מזרח העיר שלפי החשד מכרו ספרים המכילים תכני הסתה ותמיכה בטרור בחנויות ספרים, ובהם חוברת צביעה לילדים "מהירדן לים" pic.twitter.com/e23s4GfO6x
— משטרת ישראל (@IL_police) February 10, 2025
The arrests came after detectives conducted searches on Sunday night at two bookstores in the city, police said.
The suspects, both in their 30s, will be brought before a court later on Monday, where police will request an extension of their remand, the statement continued.
“The Israel Police will continue its efforts to thwart incitement and support for terrorism, as well as apprehend those involved in offenses that threaten the security of Israel’s citizens,” the statement concluded.
Last week, Israeli security forces arrested the owner of a bookstore in the Old City of Jerusalem on suspicion of selling pro-terror material, including works by slain senior Hezbollah and Hamas terror leaders Hassan Nasrallah and Yahya Sinwar.
The bookstore was discovered after police officers searched the bag of a female suspect in the Old City and found the pro-terror content, according to the police. During questioning, she claimed to have purchased the materials from a nearby bookshop a short time earlier.
Officers subsequently discovered that the store was selling numerous books containing “inciting and terrorist content, the sale and distribution of which is prohibited.”
The store owner, identified as a resident of the Old City, was detained and the business was closed for 30 days, according to police.
The Israel Defense Forces filed 303 indictments for online incitement to terror in Judea and Samaria in 2024, compared to only 60 to 70 per year before Oct. 7, 2023, Hebrew media reported on Jan. 29.
