JERUSALEM - Israeli police on Wednesday arrested a recently freed Hamas MP for refusing to follow an order expelling him from Jerusalem, police said. Mohammed Abu Teir was one of four senior Hamas officials Israel has been trying to expel in recent weeks, sparking concern among Arabs in Jerusalem worried about their rights as residents."We arrested him; he has broken the law and stayed within the borders of the state of Israel," said Jerusalem police spokesman Shmulik Ben-Ruby. "He has been detained and taken for questioning."
Israel had sought to strip Jerusalem IDs from Abu Teir, Khaled Abu Arafeh, a former minister for Jerusalem affairs, and MPs Ahmad Atoun and Mohammed Totah, a step that would likely result in their expulsion to the West Bank or the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.
The men have appealed the decision, with a final ruling expected in September. In the meantime, they have been ordered to remain in the West Bank.
| So they're not quite fearless enough to live with their comrades in Gaza? Enjoying the fleshpots of Ramallah and East Jerusalem instead? |
Palestinians living in east Jerusalem hold Israeli-issued IDs that allow them to travel freely in Israel and the West Bank, collect government benefits and vote in local but not national elections.