Reposted from Electronic Intifadah
The Electronic Intifada’s executive director Ali Abunimah was arrested by Swiss police ahead of a speaking event in Zurich on Saturday afternoon.
He is currently being detained and has had access to legal counsel.
The arrest came one day after Abunimah arrived in Zurich for a speaking tour.
When he arrived at Zurich airport on Friday, Abunimah was questioned by police for an hour before being allowed to enter the country.
Abunimah’s arrest appears to be part of a growing backlash from Western governments against expressions of solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Last year, several activists and journalists in Britain were arrested, raided or charged using “counter-terror” powers. These include Asa Winstanley, an associate editor with The Electronic Intifada, whose home was raided and his computers and phones seized. Winstanley has not been charged with any crime.
The Electronic Intifada team stands in solidarity with Ali Abunimah. Speaking out against injustice in Palestine is not a crime. Journalism is not a crime.
Editor’s note: If Americans Knew also stands in solidarity with Abunimah, the author of numerous valuable books.
In related news, in December FBI agents suddenly showed up the home of Alison Weir, executive director of If Americans Knew, to question her in an unannounced visit.
U.N. experts decry arrest of pro-Palestinian American journalist in Switzerland
Reposted from Reuters
GENEVA, Jan 26 – U.N. human rights experts and activists on Sunday condemned the arrest of an American, pro-Palestinian journalist in the Swiss city of Zurich, saying it raised concerns about freedom of speech.
Ali Abunimah, the executive director of online publication Electronic Intifada which calls itself “Palestine’s weapon of mass instruction”, was arrested by Swiss police on Saturday afternoon ahead of a speech in Zurich, the organisation said in a statement.
Swiss police confirmed that a 53-year-old American had been arrested, citing an entry ban, and said further measures under its immigration law were being considered.
UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression Irene Khan called it “shocking news” and urged Switzerland to investigate and release him in a post on X.
“The climate surrounding freedom of speech in Europe is becoming increasingly toxic, and we should all be concerned,” said Francesca Albanese, U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights in the Occupied Territories.
UPDATE:
A post on X by investigative journalist John Mcvoy states: “It turns out that Mario Fehr, the security chief in Zurich where journalist Ali Abunimah has been arrested, has spoken at pro-Israel rallies and called for pro-Palestine demos to be banned.”
It turns out that Mario Fehr, the security chief in Zurich where journalist Ali Abunimah has been arrested, has spoken at pro-Israel rallies and called for pro-Palestine demos to be banned. pic.twitter.com/TAWC56f3FU
— John McEvoy (@jmcevoy_2) January 26, 2025
Palestine Chronicle Confirms Details from Zürich Sources
Reposted from Palestine Chronicle
Swiss authorities detained Ali Abunimah, a Palestinian-American journalist and co-founder of the independent media outlet The Electronic Intifada (EI), on Saturday, January 25, 2025, sparking protests and raising concerns over the suppression of pro-Palestinian voices in the region.
The Palestine Chronicle spoke with reliable sources in Zürich to confirm the details of the incident.
Abunimah, in Zürich for an educational event organized by the Palestine Teach-in Group of Zürich, was arrested by plainclothes police officers and faces deportation under accusations of posing a threat to Switzerland’s internal security.
Educational Visit
The Palestine Teach-in Group, recently rebranded as Watermelon University, had invited Abunimah to speak at its eighth teach-in event on January 25, following seven prior sessions aimed at educating the public on Palestinian history, rights, and political futures.
According to the sources, who spoke to the Palestine Chronicle on the condition of anonymity, the group had secured a venue, which canceled the rental agreement on the morning of the event, allegedly under pressure from high-level members of its board.
With the event relocated to an outdoor venue, police intercepted Abunimah and an accompanying organizer en route.
The sources told The Palestine Chronicle that “two plainclothes policemen, who refused to show their police IDs, roughly arrested Ali, dragging him across a street and putting him into an unmarked car.”
The accompanying organizer was reportedly prevented from assisting.
Legal Proceedings and Deportation
Abunimah was taken into custody under the instigation of Mario Fehr, Justice Director of Canton Zürich, that the Swiss Federal Police (Fedpol) “issued a ban on Ali’s entry into or stay in the entire country of Switzerland because he endangered Switzerland’s internal security,” the sources said.
Despite entering Switzerland legally on Friday, January 24, without prior restrictions, Abunimah – who holds only United States citizenship and travels on a US passport – now faces deportation.
“At the time of Ali’s entry at Zürich airport on Friday afternoon there was no entry ban and he entered entirely legally after one hour of questioning by the police,” the sources explained.
The deportation is now scheduled for Monday, January 27, due to administrative delays over the weekend.
“This entails his spending Saturday and Sunday nights in jail with no contact with the outside world except with his lawyer in person,” according to the sources.
Abunimah’s lawyer “found out where he was being held and was able to be with him during his interrogation”.
“About 50 supporters gathered outside the jail building and waited three hours for his lawyer to emerge and tell us what the situation was,” the sources further explained.
However, Abunimah remains in custody with no contact beyond his lawyer until his deportation.
Broader Context of Repression
The incident is part of a broader trend of restrictions on Palestinian speakers and events in Zürich in particular and the German-speaking world in general, where pro-Palestinian discourse increasingly faces institutional and political barriers.
According to the sources, “politics and press are in the firmest of Zionist hands. This is one example. Freedom of expression is becoming a dead letter in German-speaking Switzerland.”
The sources also highlighted that a second event, which was organized by the Palästina Komittee Zürich and was supposed to take place on January 26, had already been canceled.
The original venue, Verein Zentralwäscherei, withdrew permission after pressure from Zürich’s Social Democrat-Green majority city government.
“The entire Palestine-Solidarity community of Zürich and of all of Switzerland stands fully behind Ali Abunimah and the Electronic Intifada of which he is Executive Director,” the sources said, adding:
“We would invite him again, any day, to educate us and discuss with us the issues whose solution will one day lead to justice and peace in Palestine and the larger Near East.”
‘Courageous Intellectual’
Commenting on the incident, Ramzy Baroud, Palestinian journalist and editor of the Palestine Chronicle, said that “Ali Abunimah is one of the most courageous intellectuals of our time.”
“He exemplifies the notion of speaking truth to power. Through his brilliant analyses and tireless quest for justice, Abunimah has remained steadfast in upholding universal, humanistic principles rooted in international law, humanitarian law, and the fundamental right to freedom of expression,” Baroud added.
“Detaining Abunimah serves as a frightening reminder of how Western governments have succumbed to the Israeli agenda, deviating from the most basic principles of democracy. This should concern all of us, including the citizens of these countries, as their very democratic institutions are now at risk,” Baroud continued.
According to Baroud, “The United Nations must not remain silent on the unlawful detention, deportation, and restriction of freedom for those who advocate for human rights and justice for the Palestinian people.”
Baroud also called on the UN rapporteurs to “take the lead in raising awareness of this issue and confronting Western governments that continue to engage in this unlawful, illegal, and offensive practice.”
RELATED:
- UK police raid home, seize devices of EI’s Asa Winstanley
- Police escalate the British state’s war on independent journalism
- Watch: Ali Abunimah, Guardian’s Ian Black and Israeli settler debate EU settlement rule
- EI’s Ali Abunimah banned by Chicago Zionist organization
- UK police detain Jewish scholar Haim Bresheeth following pro-Palestine address
