Thursday, 17 February 2005Khaled Abu Toameh
In the first decision of its kind since he succeeded Yasser Arafat, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has ratified death sentences against three Palestinians found guilty of "collaboration" with Israel.
It is not clear when the three men, whose identities were not revealed, will be executed by firing squad.
However, senior PA officials told The Jerusalem Post that the three were Gaza Strip residents who had been convicted of "high treason" for tipping off Israeli security forces about the whereabouts of wanted gunmen.
Sakher Bsaisso, a senior Fatah official who also serves as PA governor of the northern Gaza Strip, confirmed on Wednesday that Abbas had authorized death sentences against three alleged "collaborators."
Bsaisso said the three had been convicted of assisting Israel in the assassination of a number of Palestinian activists in the Gaza Strip over the past four years, but refused to elaborate.
He said Abbas also approved death sentences passed against scores of Palestinians found guilty of criminally motivated murders.
Bsaisso said Abbas's decision to carry out the death sentences came after PA mufti Sheikh Ikrimah Sabri authorized the executions as required by law.
At least 51 Palestinians are on death row, including several suspected "collaborators." Under pressure to crack down on an upsurge in crime and anarchy in PA-controlled areas, Abbas earlier this month instructed the mufti to quickly review the cases of the convicts so that the executions may be carried out as soon as possible.
Most of the death sentences were issued by the controversial "state security" courts in the Gaza Strip, which were dismantled two years ago after drawing sharp criticism from Palestinian human rights organizations and reformists.
Since then, the defendants have been put on trial before a special "court of criminal assize," which has also been issuing death sentences.
Bsaisso disclosed that Abbas had ordered the security forces to rearrest several convicted criminals who were released from prison for unknown reasons.
According to the Jerusalem-based Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group, 59 Palestinians have been sentenced to death by various PA courts since 1995. The first executions took place in August 1998, when two convicted murderers were brought before a firing squad in Gaza City.
Since the beginning of the intifada in September 2000, another nine Palestinians have been sentenced to death for "collaborating" with Israel, including a human rights activist from Rafah. Many others have received sentences ranging from three to 20 years in prison.
According to Amnesty International, some of the defendants were sentenced to death by firing squad after an unfair trial.
"The trials, before the State Security Court in Gaza, took place in a single sitting in the evening, during which they did have some access to lawyers. Amnesty International has previously condemned trials by the State Security Court as being grossly unfair. Trials are often summary, taking place before military judges, and there is no right of appeal," the group said in a statement.
"People convicted of 'collaboration' with Israel face extremely harsh treatment. Two were executed in January 2001. Amnesty International delegates were told that the Palestinian Authority had promised the European Union not to carry out any further executions. However, according to reports, at least 28 alleged collaborators have been killed by armed Palestinians in 2002." |
Thursday, 17 February 2005
Jerusalem Post
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