In the eyes of the U.S. government, Abdelhaleem Ashqar is a terrorist who worked for and funneled money to the militant group Hamas. He is under house arrest, awaiting trial on racketeering and obstruction charges. To Ashqar, though, the case against him is a badge of honor he hopes will bolster his candidacy as one of seven men seeking to succeed Yasser Arafat as president of the Palestinian National Authority. Ashqar, 46, is running as a long-shot candidate in the Jan. 9 election while confined to his Virginia townhouse. He could get up to life in prison if convicted. No trial date has been set.
The former university professor is one of 10 people who qualified to appear on the ballot; three of those candidates have since dropped out. Among those who withdrew is another prisoner, Marwan Barghouti, who is serving a life sentence in an Israeli jail and had been considered a leading contender for the post before throwing his support to front-runner Mahmoud Abbas. The federal prosecution of Ashqar is the culmination of an investigation that has stretched over a decade. Several times, the government offered him immunity in exchange for his testimony in front of a grand jury. Ashqar refused to testify, and when he was jailed on civil contempt charges in 1998 as a result, he went on a six-month hunger strike that placed his life in jeopardy. He was fed through a tube against his will. He also went on a two-month hunger strike last year after again being jailed on contempt charges. "They wanted me to testify against other Palestinians, wanted me to betray my cause, betray my people," Ashqar said. "I cannot do it."
The government alleges Ashqar helped funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars to Hamas in the early 1990s and participated in coded telephone conversations discussing, among other things, the killing of a Hamas member who was not obeying orders. Ashqar denies that he is a Hamas member and said the case is politically motivated. He pointed out that Hamas is boycotting the election, a decision he strongly disagrees with. "I do think some people will sympathize with me," Ashqar said of the Palestinian perception of his prosecution. "They have been following my case since 1998, and that works to my behalf. But I am also counting on my vision of leadership." |