Literatureאמיר מח'ול

Ameer Makhoul

Ameer Makhoul is an Arab Christian citizen of Israel from Haifa who directed the civil society union Ittijah and was convicted in 2011 of spying for Hezbollah.

born 1958Directing the Ittijah unionArab civil rights activism2011 conviction for Hezbollah espionage

Born: 19 June 1958, Haifa
Occupation: writer, politician, human rights defender
Education: University of Haifa

Ameer Makhoul was born in 1958 in Haifa

Ameer Makhoul was born in Haifa on 19 June 1958. He is married to Janan Abdu and they have two daughters. His brother Issam Makhoul served in the Knesset for Hadash.

He studied at the University of Haifa. He was suspended for a semester after refusing a dean's demand to move a protest elsewhere.

Makhoul became director of Ittijah, a Haifa-based union of Arab civil society groups. He also headed the freedoms committee of the High Follow-Up Committee for Arab Citizens of Israel.

In 2010 the Shin Bet arrested him on charges of spying for Hezbollah. In a plea bargain he admitted to espionage and contact with a foreign agent, and he said his earlier confession was given under pressure. In 2011 the Haifa District Court convicted him and sentenced him to 9 years in prison, and Amnesty International criticized the conviction.

He was released from prison in May 2019.