Fatima Shubeilat was arrested on April 17, 2024, after a video circulated on social media of her participating in a pro-Gaza sit-in near the Israeli embassy in Amman on March 30, 2024.
On April 17, 2024, Shubeilat was arrested at a shopping mall in the Marj al-Hamam area of Amman. She was taken to the Central Amman Police Directorate of the Public Security Directorate (PSD), and transferred to the Cybercrimes unit of the PSD in Abdali, Aman, where she was questioned in the absence of a lawyer. She was then taken into custody at the Hussein Security Centre. Finally, she was transferred to the Cybercrime Unit in Amman. That day, her request for bail was denied, for unclear reasons.
The next day, on April 18, 2024, Shubeilat was presented before the public prosecutor and charged under articles 165.4, 185 and 196.2 of the Penal Code for “unlawful gathering”, “resisting security personnel” and “insulting a public official”. The public prosecutor initially accepted her request for bail but then reneged, saying that the Cybercrime Unit had initiated another separate case against her under articles 15 and 17 of the Cybercrimes Law, returning her to the Hussein Security Centre.
On April 19, 2024, Shubeilat was once again presented before the Public Prosecutor who decided to detain her for a week in Juwaida Correction and Rehabilitation Centre. On April 21, 2024, the prosecutor refused to release her on bail or opt for alternatives to her detention. On April 23, 2024, her request for bail was denied for a third time by the public prosecutor.
On April 30, 2024, the public prosecutor agreed to release Shubeilat pending trial. She remains on trial for both cases under the Penal Code and Cybercrime Law.
On December 18, 2024, MENA Rights Group submitted a general allegation to UN Special Procedures regarding the ongoing crackdown in Jordan of pro-Palestinian activists, which includes Shubeilat’s case.