Sheikh Raed Salah, a resident of Umm al-Fahm and a central religious and political figure among Arab citizens of Israel, was arrested yesterday, Wednesday evening, in Jerusalem on suspicion of activity that could incite public disorder. After several hours, he was released on condition that he stay away from Jerusalem for two weeks.
According to Palestinian sources, Salah was arrested yesterday evening in his car while on his way to the home of residents in the Shuafat neighborhood in northern Jerusalem, who had invited him to an iftar meal (the meal that breaks the fast) on the last day of Ramadan. The arrest was carried out by police officers in civilian clothing, who took him to the Jerusalem District headquarters of the Israel Police at the Russian Compound. After several hours of questioning regarding his activities in the city, he was released on condition that he stay away from Jerusalem for two weeks.
Before his arrest, Salah had already managed to hold several social and religious meetings in the city and make statements regarding the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Among other visits, he met with Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, head of the Supreme Islamic Council and former Grand Mufti of Jerusalem – himself a well-known suspect in incitement. According to Salah, the visit was intended to congratulate Sabri on the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Eid al-Fitr.
Only a few days ago, Sabri was questioned on suspicion of inciting Muslim worshippers not to comply with Home Front Command instructions to avoid gatherings, and to come in large numbers during Ramadan to the vicinity of the Temple Mount compound to pray there, despite the site being closed to worshippers and visitors. Sabri also issued a fatwa (religious ruling) requiring the closure of mosques in the Jerusalem area on Eid al-Fitr and directing all worshippers to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
What is Raed Salah’s history of imprisonment?
Raed Salah, 68, known as the “Sheikh of Al-Aqsa,” is a central religious and political figure among Arab citizens of Israel. He served as mayor of Umm al-Fahm and as head of the northern branch of the Islamic Movement until it was outlawed in 2015. His activity focuses on preserving Muslim sovereignty over the Al-Aqsa Mosque under the slogan “Al-Aqsa is in danger,” which has made him a symbol of religious and national resistance.
Salah has served several prison terms: between 2003–2005 he was imprisoned for transferring funds to Hamas and contact with an Iranian agent. In 2010 he was jailed for five months for assaulting a police officer and incitement to violence. In 2020 he was sentenced to 17 months in prison after being convicted of incitement to terrorism following praise for a 2017 attack on the Temple Mount, in which two Druze Border Police officers were killed. The three attackers who carried out the attack were also residents of Umm al-Fahm, like Salah.
שייח' ראאד סלאח לאחר מעצרו בירושלים pic.twitter.com/VTKKiSZmhx
— jerusalem online (@Jlmonline) March 19, 2026
