Attorney Maha Ighbaria Withdraws Appeal, Citing Total Loss of Confidence in the Legal System

On 12 March 2026, the National Disciplinary Tribunal of the Israel Bar Association (IBA) officially deleted the appeal of Palestinian Attorney Maha Ighbaria, after she chose to withdraw it following the initial appellate hearing on 4 March 2026. This step brings an end to the litigation, with the result that Attorney Ighbaria will serve the one-year suspension from the IBA initially handed down by the Tel Aviv District Disciplinary Tribunal on 27 November 2025 for her private social media posts, overriding the stay of execution she had successfully secured on 1 January 2026.

In an official statement submitted to the tribunal, Attorney Ighbaria maintained that her posts contained absolutely no basis for allegations of incitement or encouragement of violence, noting that her withdrawal did not constitute a retraction of her legal or factual arguments. Instead, she emphasized that her decision was forced by what she described as a deeply compromised judicial system:

“I made this decision against the backdrop of the current public and political reality, which naturally impacts proceedings of this type. Under these circumstances, I have reached the conclusion that I lack the necessary sense of confidence required to continue pursuing this proceeding to its conclusion.”

Adalah emphasizes that the punitive process initiated against Attorney Ighbaria underscores a profoundly alarming shift since 7 October 2023, whereby Palestinian citizens of Israel face systemic, selective persecution for non-criminal political speech by private and public institutions, including the IBA, while Jewish Israelis who incite genocide are insulated from accountability.

For background about the proceedings before the IBA: Israel’s Bar Association Unlawfully Suspends Lawyer Maha Ighbaria for Social Media Posts