South African Book at Centre of Raid on Jerusalem Bookshop

A South African children’s colouring book is at the centre of a crackdown on freedom of expression in Israel.

On Sunday afternoon Israeli police raided the most popular Palestinian-owned bookshop in occupied East Jerusalem, vandalised the shop and its stock, confiscated books and detained two of its owners, Mahmoud and Ahmed Muna.

At the time, Mahmoud Muna’s 11-year-old daughter was helping in the shop, which offers a large and vibrant selection of children’s books. She witnessed her father being taken away. Mahmoud and Ahmed Muna were held in custody until Tuesday morning and released for five days under house arrest more than 24 hours after the detention.

The Educational Bookshop opened in 1984 and is the best-known bookstore in East Jerusalem. Specialising in Arabic and English writing, it is a cultural and social hub providing a centre of community in Jerusalem. It is also a meeting place for researchers, diplomats, journalists and tourists.

The Munas’ court hearing was attended by many activists and diplomats. The German and British ambassadors posted their support online. This shows the range and depth of support the bookshop receives. For comparison, the killing of a 23-year-old pregnant woman that day in Nur Shams received no such statements.

CCTV footage shows the police filling several black bin bags with many other books, including titles written by Israeli and Palestinian writers, and carrying them away during the raid. It transpired that at the time of the arrests the police had no legal warrant, and the charges of incitement (which requires a court order) were changed to disturbance of public order.

The police cited a single children’s colouring book as evidence of incitement to terrorism. From the River to the Sea is an interactive educational colouring and activity book published in South Africa by Social Bandit Media that provides an introduction to the story of Palestine.

Through a series of illustrations, Soweto-based Nathi Ngubane, tells the story of the Nakba, delves into the history and culture of the land and introduces young readers to the key concepts driving and sustaining Palestinian identity and history. It’s full of interesting information about basic aspects of the Nakba. It should be noted that Israeli imagery of a Jewish state from the river to the sea extends from publicity in weekend papers to images in educational books authorised by the Israeli ministry of education.

Nathi Ngubane is a South African based writer and illustrator. He grew up in Chesterville, a small township in Durban; graduated in graphic design from the Durban University of Technology; and has worked as a political cartoonist, and at Daily Vox, Citizen News. In 2018, he resigned these jobs to focus on his brand, Think Ahead Comics. His first book in his Duma children’s series was Duma says wash your hands and wear a mask, published in 2020.

Many people came to the store following the arrests to show their support. Israeli authors published a statement of support in which they quote Heinrich Heine: “Where they burn books, they will ultimately burn people too.”

Read also on the Israeli-Palestinian news site +972 Magazine: The day Israel came for the booksellers

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