Israeli Court Rules to Free Jerusalem Governor, Places Him Under House Arrest

Jelem, MINA – The Israeli District Court in Jerusalem ruled on Monday to release Adnan Ghaith, appointed two months ago by President Mahmoud Abbas as governor of occupied Jerusalem, and to place him under house arrest for seven days, WAFA reported, citing his attorney, Mohammad Mahmoud.

The release of Ghaith, however, was postponed until later Monday after the prosecutor has asked the court to keep him in detention pending an appeal to the Israeli High Court, said Mahmoud, who added that in addition to the house arrest, Ghaith was ordered to pay 20,000 Israeli shekels (app. $5,500) in fine.

Special Israeli forces detained Ghaith in Jerusalem on Saturday after intercepting his car in Beit Hanina neighborhood, north of the city.

The charges against him were not clear but apparently had to do with his work against the recent sale of a Palestinian-owned property in the Old City’s Muslim Quarter to Israeli settlers.

Israel bans the Palestinian Authority from carrying out any activity in occupied Jerusalem, which it annexed following its occupation in June 1967. (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)