On November 5, 2023, Somaya Jawabra, a 30-year-old freelance journalist from Nablus in the northern West Bank, was arrested. She was summoned, along with her husband, journalist Tariq Yousef Al-Sarkaji, for an investigation on incitement charges at the Israeli police station in the settlement of Ariel in the West Bank. While her husband was later released, Jawabra, who was seven months pregnant when she was arrested, remained in custody for another week.
On November 12, 2023, Jawabra was released from prison under house arrest for an indefinite period, bail of 10,000 shekels (US$2,588), and a third-party bail of 50,000 shekels (US$12,940), according to The New Arab and the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate.
Al-Sarkaji told CPJ that Jawabra’s release was also dependent upon her compliance with “a complete ban on using the internet; a prohibition on owning or using a mobile phone (with landlines being the sole exception); a ban on communicating with the media; and a strict prohibition on leaving her home. None of these conditions have a specified time limit. Furthermore, my mother and I were designated as local monitors to ensure compliance with these terms.”
In the event of any violation of these conditions, she would face a financial penalty of 50,000 shekels (US$12,940) and be subject to immediate re-arrest, her husband said, adding, “Consequently, her journalistic work has been completely suspended since her release."
In October 2024, Al-Sarkaji told CPJ via messaging app that his wife was still under house arrest and that an Israeli military court on May 12 had postponed the next hearing until December. Jawabra gave birth to her son in January 2024, while under house arrest. As of April 2026, she remained under house arrest.
Her arrest followed about two weeks of incitement against her by settlers in a Telegram group, according to her husband and London-based news website The New Arab, RT Arabic, and the Palestinian press freedom group MADA. The New Arab said settlers accused Jawabra of having Hamas ties and of inciting violence against Israel.
Jawabra was detained as part of the mass arrests Israeli forces conducted in the occupied West Bank in the wake of October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, prompting Israel to declare war on the militant group.
Regarding the conditions of her detention, Al-Sarkaji told CPJ: “She was not subjected to physical torture; however — given that she was seven months pregnant — the torture she endured was psychological in nature, involving threats that she would be held in detention for years. Nevertheless, she was physically assaulted during her transfer in a prison transport vehicle from Hasharon Prison to Damon Prison; she was struck on the head, a blow that resulted in her prescription glasses being broken."
He added that Somaya lost three kilograms (seven pounds) during her detention due to malnutrition, in spite of being pregnant.
Al-Sarkaji said that Sumayya’s trial was unfair, noting that her court hearing was conducted via video conference from Ofer Prison, while she was being held at Damon Prison. Consequently, she was unable to see her lawyer, who was physically present at the courthouse within Ofer Prison, he said.
She was among the journalists whose testimony was included in the CPJ special report, “We returned from hell,” published in February 2026, which compiles accounts from 58 journalists who reported patterns of abuse, torture, and mistreatment against Palestinian journalists inside Israeli prisons.
The Israeli military did not respond to CPJ’s repeated requests for comment on specific allegations by journalists in the report, instead requesting ID numbers and geographic coordinates that CPJ does not collect or provide. When asked about allegations of physical and sexual abuse, starvation, and the investigation and accountability process, an army spokesperson said “individuals detained are treated in accordance with international law,” adding that the armed forces “have never, and will never, deliberately target journalists,” and that any violations of protocol “will be looked into.”
CPJ also emailed the Israel Prison Service (IPS) regarding the allegations in the report. In response, the IPS said “all prisoners are detained according to the law” and that “all basic rights are fully upheld by professionally trained prison guards.” The service said it was unaware of the claims described, and that to its knowledge “no such events have occurred,” but noted that “prisoners and detainees have the right to file a complaint that will be fully examined and addressed by official authorities.”
CPJ emailed the Israel Defense Forces, Israel’s Security Agency, also known as Shin Bet, and the Israeli Prison Service in late 2024 for comment on the cases of imprisoned Palestinian journalists but received no response.
CPJ erroneously did not include Jawabra in its 2023 prison census, which counted the journalists in prison worldwide as of December 1.