MAJD ATWAN, a 22-year-old Palestinian beautician and activist, sits on the front steps of her family house in Bethlehem on May 24, enjoying her freedom. Less than a week earlier, she was behind bars after an Israeli military court sentenced her to 45 days in prison and gave her a $749 fine. Her crime: posting comments on Facebook about violence between Palestinians and Israelis, including one post in which she praised a recent bus bombing in Jerusalem. “They arrested me because they want to stop other Palestinians resisting the occupation,” says Atwan. “But it’s not working, it won’t stop us.”
Since the latest uptick in violence that began last October, the Israeli military and police have been increasingly monitoring social media posts by Palestinians and Palestinian citizens of Israel. Palestinians say this monitoring and the arrests that follow violate their right to speak freely online. Israel says that reading Palestinian posts on social media is one of the only ways it can prevent lone-wolf attacks. Israeli officials say the monitoring and arrests also enable security officers to identify those who are not themselves planning to commit acts of violence but whose posts glorify violence.
UNFRIENDED: Palestinians gather around a damaged car, which the Israeli military says was used to try to ram its security vehicles during a raid in the Qalandia refugee camp near Ramallah.
MOHAMAD TOROKMAN/REUTERS