Reading Under Threat: Why Palestinian Bookstores Are Such a Rare Breed -
It was supposed to be another ordinary Sunday afternoon at the Educational Bookshop in East Jerusalem. But then undercover policemen arrived and presented a court order enabling them to search for materials containing incitement to violence.
Store owner Mahmoud Muna and his nephew Ahmad were stunned: For two hours, the officers strolled around the bookcases, leafed through books, scanned and translated book covers on their phones, and looked for suspicious content. After collecting somewhere between 100 to 150 books, they stuffed them into large trash bags.
Booksellers Ahmad Muna appear in court after his arrest during an Israeli police raid of their long-established Palestinian-owned Educational Bookshop in east Jerusalem, on February 2025.Credit: Sraya Diamant
But the operation wasn't over yet. When the officers finished loading the bags into their van, they arrested the two family members and drove them to the Kishle police station in the Old City.
A complex role
Since the establishment of Israel in 1948 and through the years of military rule, Palestinians who wanted to become booksellers faced many difficulties. Almog Behar, a writer, poet and researcher of Arabic-Jewish literature, recounts conversations he had with poet Sasson Somekh, who had a close relationship with Palestinian poet Taha Muhammad Ali.
"They lived during the period of military rule and were looking for books in Arabic. Most of the bookshops were closed in 1948, and after the end of the War of Independence [in 1949], very few new books in Arabic came from the Arab world. From the state's perspective, books from Arab countries were considered 'contraband.'"
'Most of the bookshops were closed in 1948, and after the end of the War of Independence [in 1949], very few new books in Arabic came from the Arab world.'
The fact that some Arab countries are considered enemies of Israel only complicates matters further for bookstores. The import of books from Jordan and Egypt was allowed only after the receipt of import licenses, based on a legal opinion stating that books published in Lebanon or Syria but purchased in Jordan or Egypt did not constitute illegal trade with enemy states.
Sabri Jiryis, a longtime customer of the store and former adviser on Israeli affairs to the late Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat.Credit: Gil Eliahu
Adam Raz, a researcher at the Akevot Institute, agrees that it has been difficult to import books from Arab states over the years. However, the distribution of books written in Arabic within Israel also encountered problems. In a 2021 Haaretz article, Raz wrote: "From the establishment of the state until 1970, there was censorship of books in Arabic, and of Arabic literature and poetry written by Palestinians who are Israeli citizens." He adds that in the late '70s and early '80s, the censorship no longer focused on that.
Behar says that due to the problems with the importing, distribution and sale of Arab books, often "people's private libraries in their homes filled the gap, because there were no publicly funded libraries. The establishment wasn't interested in such things. Much of the exchange of books took place among individuals."
In the late '60s, poet Ali opened a store selling souvenirs and books in Nazareth. Over time, it became a space where intellectuals gathered and a meeting point for poets and artists such as Mahmoud Darwish, Samih al-Qasim and Emile Habibi. News of the store spread by word of mouth in the Arab community; students started visiting in the hope of meeting the great poets, and there were evenings of poetry and prose readings.
In Haifa, it's a younger, more vibrant middle class, with artists from various fields – not just writers and poets.
Almog Behar
Behar stresses that due to the specific history of the Palestinians in Israel, the dividing line between a library and a bookstore remains blurred in Arab society. "In Arabic, the word maktaba means both library and bookstore. It reflects a mixed role of educating, creating an intellectual space and selling books."
In 1970, two new bookstores emerged that are considered the oldest in Arab society in Israel, and both are still operating today: Sifriyat Al-Shaya, a bookshop and publisher in Haifa; and Sifriyat Samir Al-Safdi in Nazareth. The 1979 peace treaty with Egypt enabled bookstore owners to import Arabic books from Cairo, a step that improved their ability to offer Arab readers a wide variety of content that had hitherto been unavailable.
Almog Behar, a writer, poet and researcher of Arabic-Jewish literature.Credit: Ohad Zwigenberg
Sabri Jiryis, a longtime customer of the Education Bookshop and former adviser on Israeli affairs to the late Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat, explains that this turning point also occurred because of an increased demand for books within the Arab community. "The upsurge of attendance at academic institutions among Arabs expanded the circle of readers," he says. "Education in Arab schools also expanded, and there was greater emphasis on reading books. The field of original literature for children in Arabic developed, and later for teenagers as well."
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Despite the changes in Arab society and the peace agreements with Egypt and, later, Jordan, the sales and reading of books dropped off. A 2017 survey by the Central Bureau of Statistics on reading habits in the Arab community revealed that about half of the Arab population, 49 percent, didn't read books at all – compared to 24 percent among Israel's Jewish population. No similar surveys have been conducted since.
Yet in spite of the absence of newer data examining reading habits among Arabs in Israel, the reality speaks for itself: bookstores for readers of Arabic are a rare sight in Israel.
Manal Sabaaneh, a children's author, translator and publisher, and the owner of a bookstore in the Arab town of Kafr Qara.Credit: Rami Shlush
"If we go back 10 years, the number of stores specializing in books was small and could be counted on one hand. Today, there's an increased demand for books – but mainly in the area of children's literature," says Manal Sabaaneh, a children's author, translator and publisher.
Sabaaneh, the owner of a bookstore in the Arab town of Kafr Qara, adds that "the idea of a bookstore is almost nonexistent in Arab society. There are very few stores that specialize in selling books only."
Intercultural spaces
Despite the bleak reality, some people have decided to take up the challenge of establishing a bookstore aimed at the Arab population. One of them is Michel El Rahab, who started Jaffa's Yafa Café in 2003, combining book sales, various cultural activities and a café. Rahab had seen a similar place during a visit to Bulgaria, and decided to follow suit when he returned to Israel.
A sign is displayed in support of Mahmoud Muna and Ahmed Muna at the Educational Bookshop.Credit: Ammar Awad/Reuters
"For me, it's a cultural center in every sense and not just a bookstore," he says. "We screen a film every week, hold lectures, have book launches and also offer Arabic language workshops. We're creating a cultural space in Jaffa. Our audience is diverse, both Arabs and Jews, and people from all parts of society come to us."
He says the agenda behind his store is "to make Arab culture visible in all languages and to expose readers to this culture. There aren't any Arabic bookstores in the center of the country aside from us, and that's why this place is important. If Yafa Café didn't exist, there would be no cultural space for Arabs in Jaffa, or in the entire central region. What do we have other than theater? There's no center to disseminate Arabic culture. Culture is our existence: If there's no culture, there's no meaning to our existence."
Behar also highlights the importance of Yafa Café as a shared space for Arabs and Jews. He mentions the launch of the bilingual anthology "Shtayim/Athnaan" ("two" in English), which includes works in both Arabic and Hebrew, which took place there about a decade ago. "That was the appropriate place in which to read in the two languages, and the audience for the most part knew both languages. It's a space that creates a community around it."
Books in Arabic, and Arabic books translated into Hebrew, displayed at the Jaffa's Yafa Café.Credit: Avishag Shaar-Yashuv
In 2016, a bookstore called Al-Matajer, located on the second floor of the Fattoush restaurant in Haifa, was established. As opposed to Yafa Café, this store also offers albums from local Arab artists and handmade objets d'art. It too serves as a cultural space and meeting point for Jewish and Arab intellectuals.
"One could say there are imagined communities surrounding these stores, and they differ somewhat from each other," says Behar. "In Haifa, it's a younger, more vibrant middle class, with artists from various fields – not just writers and poets. In Jerusalem, it works on a different axis, with the emphasis on realizing the store's potential in the surrounding community. For activists from abroad who come to the West Bank, the Educational Bookshop is a place of community, consciousness and encounter."
'If Yafa Café didn't exist, there would be no cultural space for Arabs in Jaffa, or in the entire central region.'
At Sabaaneh's Atafeal bookstore in Kafr Qara, things are different but no less interesting. Sabaaneh says she initially opened the space as a play area, with books sold on the side. Because of the pandemic, though, she decided to focus solely on the selling and publishing of books. Today, her store is the only one in the region that offers nothing but books. "It's part of a desire to change the reality – and for me, the mere existence of the store is a statement in itself: that's it's possible, and it can last for years."
Various events take place at Atafeal: for example, a story hour that includes a discussion around a book, or creative writing workshops for teenagers and adults. "We don't just sell books; we advise parents on what to choose and what not to choose for their children," she says.
Jaffa's Yafa Café.Credit: Avishag Shaar-Yashuv
Sabaaneh has also been involved in collaborations with Jewish writers. In 2018, she translated David Grossman's book "Buba Tuti" ("Tuti the Doll") with the support of the Mifal Hapayis lottery fund, and held a bilingual in-store event with the author. "Parents and children, Jews and Arabs, attended and we read the story in both languages. It was fascinating and very meaningful."
In 2020, she held a bilingual Arabic-Hebrew children's reading session for Mirik Snir's story "Galgalim" ("Wheels"), again with the author present. "Events like these are important because they build bridges between the two cultures. I'd love to see more such encounters," she says.
The recent incident at the Educational Bookshop in Jerusalem classifies books as something that represents a danger to the public. In reality, though, bookstores in Arab society are a lifeline for lovers of culture, poetry and literature.
"The role of a bookstore in Arab society isn't only to sell books," Sabaaneh sums up, "but to create an alternative space for the community that encourages reading, keeps youngsters away from risks, and empowers parents who want to develop reading habits in their children."