‘You’ll say what Hitler did was a joke’: Israel arrests Palestinian icon Ahed Tamimi

The Israeli army has arrested the 22-year-old activist Ahed Tamimi, who is an icon of the Palestinian cause around the world, France Press reported.

“Ahed Tamimi, suspected of inciting violence and terrorist activities, was detained in the city of Nabi Saleh. Tamimi was handed over to Israeli security forces for further questioning,” commented an army spokesman, quoted by AFP.

The activist was arrested during an operation by the Israeli army “aimed at detaining individuals suspected of participating in terrorist activities and inciting hatred” in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

Ahed Tamimi became famous at the age of 14 when she was filmed biting an Israeli soldier to prevent him from arresting her little brother, who was chained to the ground and had his arm in a plaster cast.

Since then, she has become a global icon of the Palestinian cause and is seen by Palestinians as an example of courage against Israeli repression in the occupied Palestinian territories.

A huge portrait of her was also painted on the Israeli separation wall in the occupied West Bank, in the Bethlehem sector.

Tamimi was arrested in 2017 and detained for 8 months for slapping two Israeli soldiers in the yard of her family home in Nabi Saleh. He is serving his full sentence in prison.

A week ago in an Instagram post, she called for the killing of settlers in the West Bank in a post.

“We are waiting for you in all the cities of the West Bank from Hebron to Jenin – we will slaughter you and you will tell yourselves that what Hitler did to you was a joke. We’ll drink your blood, we’ll eat your skull. Come on, we’re waiting for you,” commented Ahed Tamimi.

Tamimi’s violence against Israeli soldiers earned her notoriety in the Palestinian community. For many Palestinians, she is a national hero and one of the symbols of the Palestinian struggle against Israel’s policies in the Palestinian territories. Since May 2018, she has been an honorary member of the Palestinian National Council.

The Israeli army celebrated Ahed Tamimi’s arrest by posting a photo on Facebook with the caption: “Where is her smile now?”

Since the start of the war, sparked by a murderous attack by Hamas in Israel on October 7, Israeli security forces have carried out mass arrests of Palestinians suspected of violence, incitement to violence or being members of Hamas.

150 Palestinians have been killed in the occupied West Bank by Israeli soldiers or by Jewish settlers, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.