Palestinian journalist jailed for 'insulting' Abbas
Journalist gets one year sentence after sharing photo comparing Abbas's face to a villain on a Syrian TV show.
abbas370(photo credit: Courtesy)ByKHALED ABU TOAMEHJournalist Mamdouh Hamamreh from Bethlehem was sentenced on Thursday to one year in prison for “insulting” Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Facebook.He is the second Palestinian to be sentenced to one year in prison for this offense since the beginning of the year.Hamamreh, who works for the Palestinian Al-Quds TV station, was found guilty of sharing a photo on Facebook that compared Abbas to a man who played the role of a French spy in a popular Syrian TV series.A PA court in Bethlehem found the journalist guilty of publishing a photo “harming his excellency the president, disseminating lies, libel and slander and publishing material that spreads seeds of hatred.”In February, a PA court in Nablus sentenced 26-year-old Anas Said Awad to one year in prison for publishing a photo of Abbas on Facebook depicting the PA president as a player for Real Madrid.Last year, the PA security forces in the West Bank detained a number of Palestinian journalists and activists for posting critical comments and jokes about the Abbas and other leaders on Facebook.RECOMMENDED STORIESAt least 70 wounded, two killed after four rounds of Iranian attack slam IsraelJUNE 12, 2025Israel trying to persuade US to join in continuing strikes on Iran, sources tell 'Post'JUNE 13, 2025Vacation ruse, phantom trip, hostage decoy: How Israel misled Tehran before Iran strikeJUNE 13, 2025Mossad leads series of secret attack operations in heart of IranJUNE 13, 2025