The latest of the detained activist, Mohammed “Habshe” Yossef, is a member of the art collective Decolonize This Place.
Mohammed “Habshe” Yossef. Source: Facebook/ArtAsiaPacific
He was arrested in his apartment in Bethlehem’s Aida refugee camp, where he lives with his partner and three children. The operation was carried out by 50 soldiers, ArtAsiaPacific writes. Habshe is a member of Decolonize This Place and MTL art collectives. Both groups struggle for freedom of Palestine and cooperate with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
Habshe was released a week after the arrest and interrogations. An Israeli military court dismissed the charge of “incitement on social media” brought against him. Hyperallergic thinks the arrest was an attempt to scare him and other activists who stand against the Israeli occupation of Jerusalem and Sector Gaza, following Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. On January 7, the Israeli authorities released a list of 20 BDS-friendly organisations whose members will be barred from entering Jerusalem.
In December, Aida activist Mynther Amira and Ahed Tamimi, an activist in the village of Nabi Saleh who has links to Aida, were detained. The Aida Youth Center operates as a site of cultural resistance and artistic production. Habshe has been responsible for cultural programmes for the last 10 years.
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