'PA man commits suicide over collaboration charge'

Mansour, former head of PA department that prevents Palestinians from land sales to Israelis, jumps off 3rd floor of building.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
PA Police 311 (photo credit: REUTERS)
PA Police 311
(photo credit: 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.