'PA man commits suicide over collaboration charge'
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
07/15/2012 22:56
Mansour, former head of PA department that prevents Palestinians from land sales to Israelis, jumps off 3rd floor of building.
PA police stang guard in West Bank Photo: REUTERS
A senior Palestinian Authority official who was arrested recently on suspicion
of collaboration with Israel committed suicide in Ramallah on
Sunday.
Osama Hussein Mansour, 49, was killed when he jumped from the
third floor of a building that serves as headquarters of the PA’s Military
Intelligence force.
A PA security source said that Mansour was arrested
three weeks ago for collaboration with Israel and involvement in land
transactions with Israelis.
The source said Mansour had been in charge of
a department that was created by the PA to prevent Palestinians from selling
lands to Israelis.
“We discovered that the man who was responsible for
thwarting such land deals was himself involved in such transactions,” the source
told The Jerusalem Post.
The source pointed out that PA law bans
Palestinians from conducting real estate deals with Israelis – a crime
punishable by death in the Palestinian territories.
Mansour jumped to his
death while he was being escorted to the offices of the Palestinian Military
Prosecution in Ramallah.
A spokesman for the PA security forces said
Mansour was suspected of involvement in corruption, but did not
elaborate.
The spokesman said that the PA has formed a special commission
of inquiry to investigate the circumstances surrounding the official’s death.