The extremist Islamic activist (Murabita), Samah Mahamid, an Israeli citizen and resident of Umm al-Fahm, aged about 36, has been barred from Jerusalem and the Temple Mount compound after being arrested last week on suspicion of incitement and sedition offenses on social media. The alleged offenses were committed at a sensitive time, earlier during the past year, amid heightened security tensions and the intense fighting with Iran.
The incident began when police forces raided Mahamid’s home in Umm al-Fahm in the early morning hours of August 27, 2026. The raid and search, during which her mobile phone and various books were seized, followed targeted monitoring of posts she had uploaded to social media.
Mahamid posted two “stories” on her Instagram account in which she sharply attacked Israeli security policy on the Temple Mount during the days of fighting with Iran.
In her posts, she expressed deep sorrow and sadness that the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque had remained empty of worshippers during those days and weeks, while accusing the authorities of exploiting the period of fighting with Iran to impose restrictions, close the gates and deliberately empty the compound of Muslims, while denying that these were sweeping security directives prohibiting mass gatherings because of missile fire from Iran.
Israel’s security establishment interpreted the posts as a blatant attempt to generate religious agitation and political volatility in the Arab public, precisely as Israel was dealing with complex military fronts.
Mahamid was taken for questioning at the Kishle police station, which serves as the headquarters of the David Precinct of the Jerusalem District Police and is responsible for the Old City area. Her detention was subsequently extended by seven days. At the end of the detention period, Mahamid was brought before the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, which decided to release her under strict restrictions intended to prevent her from continuing her extremist activity: she was barred from the entire city of Jerusalem for 90 days, placed under full house arrest for five days, and completely prohibited from using social media and the internet.
What Was the Murabitat Organization That Operated on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount?
Mahamid is well known to Israel’s security establishment as a prominent member of the “Murabitat” organization. These were groups of Islamic women who operated for years in the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem with the aim of establishing a permanent Muslim presence, confronting police forces, and disrupting visits by Jews and tourists through shouting and violence.
The organization’s activists functioned as a central agitation arm of the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, and for that reason were declared an unlawful association and an outlawed terrorist organization in 2015. Because of this activity, Mahamid has over the years been subject to a long series of administrative orders, arrests at the site and frequent bans from Jerusalem’s Old City.
