Israel detains Palestinian for 'social media incitement'

Israel has arrested a Palestinian man for social media posts "inciting violence", as Tel Aviv continues its crackdown on dissent in the occupied territories.

The 35-year-old Palestinian man was arrested in Jerusalem for allegedly threatening violence and "inciting terrorism" on social media, Palestine based Maan News Agency reported.

The unnamed man was detained in Jerusalem "on suspicion of threats to violence and incitement and supporting terrorism" on social media, according to a written statement by Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. 

The suspect will remain detained until Wednesday, Rosenfeld added. It is unclear what exactly he said.

"Police are continuing intelligence and operations to find suspects that are involved in incitement and terrorism and using social media as a platform," the statement said.

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank have been living under Israeli military law since the occupation began in 1967, severely restricting their freedom of expression.

Both peaceful and violent forms of protest and dissent are treated as terrorist incitement under the notorious Military Order 101.

In addition to Israel's crackdown on cyber-dissent, Palestinians have also been targeted by their own rival authorities in the West Bank and Gaza.

Last month, Amnsty International warned that the crackdown on Palestinian freedom of expression had reached "dangerous escalation".

The human rights group criticised both the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and Gaza-based Hamas for their crackdown on dissent.

"The last few months have seen a sharp escalation in attacks on journalists and the media by the Palestinian authorities in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza in a bid to silence dissent," said Magdalena Mughrabi, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Amnesty International.

Both Hamas and the PA continue to crackdown on human rights and press freedoms in areas under their control. 

With the increase in arrests against dissenters in the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinians continue to suffer not just at the hands of the Israeli occupation but also by the rival authorities.