Basem Khandakji

Basem Khandakji (; born 1983) is a Palestinian writer who was born in 1983. When he was 20, he was convicted in his role in helping to kill three people. His novel, written while in prison, A Mask, the Color of the Sky won the Arabic Booker Prize in 2024.

He has studied at An-Najah National University and Al-Quds University. He was arrested by the Israeli Defense Forces on November 2, 2004, and was sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement in the Carmel Market bombing, in which three people were murdered. He has published several novels, poems, and studies from prison. Khandakhji was released from Israeli prison in 2025 as part of the deal to exchange Palestinian prisoners for hostages being held by Hamas.

Personal life Basem Muhammad Salih Adeeb Khandakji was born on December 22, 1983. He studied in Nablus Governorate Schools. Later, he joined An-Najah National University to study in the Department of Journalism and Media. He witnessed the First Intifada which affected and subsequently he joined the ranks of the former Communist Palestinian People's Party when he was 15 years old.

Involvement in the Carmel Market Bombing On November the 2nd of 2004 Khandakji used his journalist ID card to get through IDF checkpoints in the West Bank in order to drive sixteen year old Amar al-Far to Tel Aviv. Later that day, al-Far detonated a bomb in Carmel Market, killing himself along with Shmuel Levy, Leah Levin, and Tatiana Ackerman also injuring 32 others. The PFLP took credit for the attack. In 2025 he said that he did not express any regret for his actions.

Arrest and Imprisonment Khandakji was arrested on November 2, 2004, by Israeli forces, on accusations of involvement in the bombing. Khandakji was sentenced on June 7, 2005, to three life sentences. In addition to this, the Israeli authorities demanded that he compensate the families of those who were killed in the operation with an amount of $11.6 million.

In prison, he enrolled in Al-Quds University, studying political science and writing a thesis on Israeli studies. On 2025 in an interview he confirmed writing a new book about a fellow prisoner, the PLF leader Walid Daqqa, who served lifetime punishment for murdering Israeli Soldier. In the same interview Khandakji confirmed he was involved in sending a suicide bomber to kill Israelis. He noted that he intended to send them to attack military targets, not civilians, adding that if he could turn back the clock, he would not have resorted to violence.