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Release Ali Samoudi and other imprisoned colleagues!
Ali Samoudi
THE PRESS Freedom Center at the US National Press Club on 15 July renewed the call for the release of prominent West Bank Journalist Ali Samoudi. Ali was detained on 29 April, 12 days before the anniversary of the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh on 11 May 2022 - when Ali was also shot, in the back, by Israeli forces. [Skip to update and to 22 August update]
On 8 May it was reported that Ali had been subjected to six months' “administrative detention” under a law passed during the British Mandate control of Palestine from 1918 to 1948. Administrative detention orders were established as an emergency power to enable British forces to hold people without charge for up to six months at a time. Israeli forces appropriated this power following their military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in 1967. Administrative detention orders can be renewed indefinitely.
No evidence was offered when the administrative detention order against Ali was made.
The Press Freedom Center call followed a screening at the Press Club on 12 July of the film Who Killed Shireen?, produced by Zee, whose founder Media Assam was present. Ali was of course a key witness interviewed in the film.
Ali was detained in the notorious Eidola prison. On 1 June the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate warned of a serious deterioration in his health due to Israel’s policy of medical neglect against Palestinian prisoners. On 26 June we read a report that Ali had been transferred to "the Negev desert prison", which we take to mean Sde Teiman detention camp.
On 24 July Zeteo hailed the first showing of Who Killed Shireen? outside the US, at the Frontline Club in London.
The Press Freedom Center reports that at least 20 Palestinian journalists are currently being held in military administrative detention. Nasser Laham, editor-in-chief of Ma'an news agency was arrested at his home in Bethlehem by the Israeli military on 7 July and released on 16 July. He is reported by the Times of Israel to have been beaten and filmed naked by guards in Ofer prison, who told him "We’ll publish this in Bethlehem in order to shame you".
5 August 2025
We have at last found[note] this page on the Committee to Protect Journalists site: Arrests of Palestinian journalists since start of Israel-Gaza war. It reports Riyad Arada, a lawyer at the Israeli Ofer Military Court, saying on 17 June 2025: “I saw Ali via WhatsApp, and he had lost 14 kilograms during his detention due to the lack of food provided to prisoners.” Further:
On 27 June, Al-Samoudi’s sentence was reduced by about two months, according to the lawyer, with his release date set for 4 September, 2025.
We'll see.
On 31 July 2025 the page listed 85 arrests by Israel and 5 by Palestinian authorities in Gaza and the West Bank; 35 remain under arrest, all in Israeli hands. It's worth quoting some of CPJ's experience:
At least seven journalists’ families have told CPJ that they have been unable to trace their detained relatives, despite reaching out via human rights groups, humanitarian organizations, and lawyers...
The IDF said it could not fully address CPJ’s inquiry about individual journalists because not enough details, such as their ID numbers or full names, were included. CPJ had earlier advised the IDF that research limitations in Gaza prevented the provision of such information.
The IDF and the Israeli Prison Service did not respond to CPJ’s queries about the location of several journalists including Ahmed Abdel Aal, Amjad Arafat, Mahmoud Elewa, Imad Ifranji, Khalil Odeh and Shadi Abu Sido...
CPJ is still working to research, document, and verify reports about the arrest of at least six other journalists in Gaza not included in this list.
We think it will be worth reading all 25,000 words.
22 August 2025
Yesterday the Palestine Journalists Syndicate called for immediate release of the prominent West Bank journalist. It quoted Ali Samoudi's lawyer as saying that he is suffering from severe physical and psychological abuse, rapid weight loss, and worsening chronic illnesses due to deliberate medical neglect.
Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate urges urgent action to save detained journalist Ali al-Samoudi al24news.dz (Algeria)
[Note] Internet search really does seem to be getting much worse; we do not think we are getting worse at it. It was only when we lit on the formula site:cpj.org Samoudi that the compiled list showed up. The last entry in the CPJ database of arrests is dated 18 November 2024 - presumably the cut-off is for its annual report for the year ending 31 December.