At around 2:30 a.m. on September 19, several Israeli military vehicles surrounded the home of Mujahed al-Saadi, a well-known Palestinian journalist in the West Bank and Drop Site News contributor.

Members of an Israeli special forces unit broke down his door and stormed inside, according to Mujahed’s brother, Hamadah. Using the butts of their M16 rifles and their bare fists, they beat the barefoot al-Saadi in his face and chest. Al-Saadi’s wife, three young children, and father also reside in the house. When his wife tried to hand him his shoes, the soldiers beat her as well, according to his colleague in Jenin who asked to remain anonymous out of fear for their safety.

The Israeli soldiers then took Mujahed to Jalameh prison to interrogate him before transferring him to Megiddo, a prison notorious for abuse and mistreatment of prisoners. At least four detainees have died inside the prison since October as a result of severe beatings by prison guards or medical neglect.

Since al-Saadi’s arrest on September 19, he has had no contact with family members. An Israeli military court on September 30 ordered him to be locked up for six months in administrative detention, a policy under which prisoners can be held without charge or trial, and can be renewed indefinitely.

Since October 7, Israel has arrested an unprecedented 51 journalists and media workers in the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Israel continues to hold at least 14 of those journalists under administrative detention.

In Gaza, the Israeli military has killed over 160 journalists, over the past year, making it the deadliest place in the world for journalists in living memory.

Al-Saadi reported a story for Drop Site News in early September on Israeli forces laying siege to hospitals in Jenin during its invasion of the city and refugee camp. In the course of his reporting, he and a group of colleagues came under fire from Israeli troops, who proceeded to charge at them at high speeds with bulldozers. On May 11, 2022, al-Saadi was reporting on the aftermath of an Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp. He was standing only a few feet from Shireen Abu Akleh, the renowned Al Jazeera journalist, when an Israeli sniper murdered her. (You can watch al-Saadi’s account of that day in the Fault Lines documentary, “The Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh”).

Al-Saadi is still in detention. And since we published this story, the Israeli military has still given no information as to his whereabouts or well being. Tell the State Department to intervene and insist on al-Saadi’s release.

The United States must live up to its First Amendment values and protect journalists. When our ostensible ally imprisons and kills journalists during a war that is being carried out with the support of the American government, we rely on journalists on the ground to provide a clear look at what’s happening. The United States Department of State must use its diplomatic power to demand the release of imprisoned journalist Mujahed al-Saadi and an end to the brutal and deadly attacks on the press.

SIGN NOW: Tell the State Department to demand the release of imprisoned journalist Mujahed al-Saadi!