An Israeli military court on Monday rejected an appeal to release jailed Palestinian cartoonist Muhammad Sabanah, a lawyer from the Palestinian Prisoners Society said.

A judge at Ofer military court ordered Sabanah to be detained for a further eight days to continue interrogations, Jawad Boulous told Ma’an.

The judge said that new elements in the case, namely the arrest of Sabanah’s brother last week, necessitated further interrogation.

Boulous told Ma’an that Sabanah was brought to Ofer court from Jalameh detention center, where he had been held in solitary confinement.

Israeli forces detained Sabanah, 30, at the Allenby Bridge crossing between Jordan and the West Bank on Feb. 16, without providing any explanation.

Sabanah’s brother, Thamaer, was arrested on March 6 from his home near Jenin. Israeli soldiers also confiscated his laptop and cell phone, his wife told Ma’an.

Sabanah’s cartoons are widespread in the Arab world. He is well-known for his criticism through his cartoons, which focus mainly on the Palestinian people’s problems and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

(Ma’an – www.maannews.net)