Court keeps Palestinian journalist Abed Abou Shhadeh in custody until November 8

An Israeli court has ordered that Abed Abou Shhadeh, a Palestinian journalist, remain in custody until Sunday, November 8. The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court made the ruling on Wednesday, November 4, according to Al Jazeera.

Israeli security forces raided Abou Shhadeh's home in Jaffa overnight on Tuesday and detained him. He hosts the al-Midan podcast for the Arab48 website and has appeared as an analyst on Al Jazeera, including during coverage of the recent Israeli election.

Israeli police asked for an eight-day extension of his detention. They cited suspicion of "contact with a foreign agent."

Israeli media reported that the arrest followed an interview Abou Shhadeh took part in, in Qatar, with the Palestinian intellectual Azmi Bishara. Bishara is a former member of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, and a former head of the Balad party. Abou Shhadeh's lawyers say his interrogation focused solely on that interview. One of them found that he was being held at a facility of Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, in Petah Tikva.

Adalah, a legal rights group, is part of Abou Shhadeh's defence team. According to Adalah, police raised no allegations beyond the interview about the Israeli election campaign and Palestinians, which remains publicly available. The defence argues that Bishara is not a "foreign agent" and that interviewing him cannot give rise to suspicion of a criminal offence. Adalah said it would appeal the decision to extend the detention.