Former Knesset member Mohammed Barakeh was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of incitement to terrorism, police said, over a public speech he delivered in 2022. Barakeh, a former Hadash-Ta'al lawmaker, was questioned by the Judea and Samaria District after the Samaria crime-fighting unit investigated the case and prosecutors approved opening a criminal inquiry under Israel’s Anti-Terrorism Law of 2016.
According to the investigation, Barakeh’s remarks at a public rally included praise, sympathy and identification with terrorists and terror organizations, along with explicit calls to struggle against the State of Israel. The material was reviewed by the prosecution after a complaint was filed, and police began active investigative steps last week once legal authorization was granted.
On Tuesday, after the case advanced and a formal arrest warrant was issued by the court, Barakeh was detained and brought for questioning at the Samaria unit’s offices. He was later taken before the court, where police requested restrictive release conditions.
The court accepted the request and ordered Barakeh released under conditions that include an immediate ban from Judea and Samaria for 30 days, as well as signed undertakings and financial guarantees. The arrest drew criticism from Jafar Farah, who called it “unnecessary and without any investigative need,” and from MK Ofer Cassif, who condemned it as political persecution and an attempt to intimidate him over a speech from four years ago.
