Educational Bookshop Ostjerusalem – “The sale of books is not a crime”

In the middle of the always busy Salah-Ad-Din-Straße in Eastern Jerusalem is the “Educational Book Shop of the Munich family-a popular book business for locals as well as for tourists, students, journalists and diplomats to read, chat or simply and simply enjoy the hot coffee or tea that can be consumed there. The two branches are directly opposite each other. One business focuses on Arab -language books, while the other focuses on English -speaking.

With “Ahlan Wa Sahlan” (Arabic for “Welcome”), the 42-year-old Mahmoud Muna, the owner of the “Educational Book Shop”, is usually welcoming his customers-and with a broad smile on his face. However, this smile disappeared from the popular bookstore on Sunday, February 9th, when police raids took place in both branches of the Palestinian, whereupon Mahmoud himself and his nephew Ahmad Muna, who also works in the shop. »The Israeli police came to the bookstore with a search order – a document that did not actually give them the right to arrest. But at some point (in the course of the raid, note. “From (the accusation of) ‘reconciliation’ became ‘disruption of public order‹ – because they can actually detain people under this accusation. «

“We read our first books here. We would like to signal to the people that despite everything, we don’t let ourselves be down. The shop is our life. “

Murad eggBrother of the book store owner

There was no such incident in the 40-year history of the bookstore. Mahmoud spent practically his whole life there, as well as his brothers Murad, Imad and Iyad, who have temporarily stepped in to not have to close the two business during the absence of Mahmoud and Ahmad. Although the two were released by the Israeli police after about 48 hours, they were under house arrest for another five days and were also not allowed to enter their business for 20 days, i.e. until March 2.

Mahmoud says that the business is more than just one bookstore for him. “I learned to crawl and go there. As a student, I later worked there in the summer months, «he says. Since it is a family company, the bookshop is closely linked to the memories and growing up of family members.

Murad, who helped out during the absence of his brother Mahmoud, works full -time for the human rights organization Hamoked (Hebrew for “The Center”), which offers legal support for Palestinians free of charge. It was important to him to keep the family business open while Mahmoud and Ahmad were absent, which is why he was extra freinahm. “We read our first books here in this shop. We would like to signal to the people that despite everything, we don’t let ourselves be down. The shop is practically our lives and that’s why we should continue to open. “

Load as part of identity

Mahmoud says that his work has linked close relationships with the people in his environment. Many visitors who go in and out of the shop know him and his nephew Ahmad- although not always by name, as he admits in the interview with a smile. Over the years, they have built up numerous contacts and friendships, and they became known as “the booksellers”. »The bookstore has become part of our identity. As a family, we have always tried to use them as a kind of workshop – a room for discussions, discussions and open exchange of ideas. Here people can speak freely and openly, «says Mahmoud.

One of the two branches is also a café and would be a second home for many visitors, where they can forget the worries of everyday life, the crew and war for at least a moment. The spectrum of the books offered there is very versatile. Numerous works on Israeli-Palestinian history and conflict, but also to learn the Arabic language, can be found. Many foreign customers come here to practice the spoken Arabic with Ahmad and Mahmoud. The booksellers always pay attention to a clear and clear pronunciation when they see that a customer is currently learning the Palestinian dialect.

Quick judgments

How most booksellers treat Mahmoud and his family like their treasures. When he had to watch on the day of the raid how the police threw hundreds of books in plastic bags, he offered them boxes for transport to avoid damage. However, these rejected his proposal. “What really hurt me was the lack of respect for the books. There are reasonable ways to treat, transport and maintain books. But throwing old clothes or shoes in garbage bags is neither professional nor respectful. “

Those books whose integrations for the police were suspicious were confiscated. If a Palestinian flag, a Kufiya or another Palestinian symbol was shown on a book cover, the book titles and blurb were translated by the police via the Google translation app in Hebrew and the books were then confiscated. For Mahmoud, who also spoke to the officers in Hebrew, the entire situation was like a George Orwell novel. Police officers, who could neither English nor Arabic, took books out of nowhere, but they could not read, under the pretext that they were “repellent”. “It is ridiculous to describe these books as stirring. The sale of books is not a crime, «he says.

Murad was able to pick up the majority of the over 250 confiscated books a few hours after Mahmouds and Ahmads. As expected, many were damaged by the unsuitable transport and the rough procedure of the police forces.

Eight books remain in the police custody. One of them is a children’s coloring book entitled “From the River to the Sea” by the South African author and illustrator Nathi NGubane. It was the only copy of the bookstore and was not for sale at all, as Murad says. The book shows numerous Palestinian personalities such as Edward Said and Refaat Alareer, who was killed during the ongoing Gaza war. The pro-Israeli newspaper »South African Jewish Report“Criticized the title of the book in the past and described it as an anti -Semitic call to the extinction of Israel. Israelis are also only presented in the book as a oppressor, as the newspaper criticizes.

Mahmoud himself brought up a book entitled “Daybreak in Gaza” last year, which includes stories of over 100 people from Gaza, which report on her life before and in the ongoing war. Surprisingly, however, the work was not one of the confiscated pieces, as the bookseller stated in astonishment.

In addition to the damage to the books, the robbery also has a long -term impact on the Munich family. Mahmoud’s eleven -year -old daughter Leila was in the shop during the attack and experienced her father and cousin’s arrest. »Leila is still traumatized. She seems to feel better since our return, but I know that such experiences can stay with humans for a long time, «says Mahmoud.

Renewed raid

Just four weeks after the incident, there was another raid on the bookstore on March 11, whereby the procedure was the same. This time around 50 books were confiscated and Murads and Munich brother Imad were detained. The police left him again without any indictment a few hours later. Except for three works, the other books could be picked up again on the same day. The family cannot say why the raids have just taken place now. However, she knows that the attack on her bookstore is not an isolated case. “It is clear that cultural spaces, especially those that represent the Palestinian identity, are specifically restricted,” says Mahmoud. The deputy Israeli public prosecutor had already criticized the police in February after the first raid in February. Haaretz reportsThat the public prosecutor has said that he had talks with higher police officers “to” ensure that such incidents do not repeat “. Obviously, however, the talks from the past month have had no effect.

It takes time for the family to recover from the events, but she had found comfort in the overwhelming support of customers. Many people, including members of Israeli left groups and Jewish diaspora organizations, have shown their solidarity with the book dealers in recent weeks. Also the German ambassador in Israel, Steffen Seibert, criticized the two raids on X. Seibert questioned the purpose of imprisoning Palestinian booksellers, which he described as “embodiment of peaceful dialogue”.