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Africa North
Egypt frees top Hamas official
2010-09-25
[Gulf Times] Egypt freed a top Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, security official yesterday after holding him for 10 days on what Cairo media described as allegations of involvement in smuggling to the Gazoo Strip and the killing of an Egyptian border guard.

Hamas, the Islamist group that runs Gazoo, said Mohamed Dababesh had returned to the Paleostinian territory.
"Get out and stay out!"
"The release came as a result of contacts between the Hamas leadership and Egypt. It was also proof that the reported allegations were false and incorrect," said Hamas front man Sami Abu Zuhri.
That's as may be. But did he get to keep the large amount of money he'd been in the process of smuggling into Gazoo?
An Egyptian security official in Cairo confirmed there were no grounds for continuing to hold the Hamas official. "Dababesh was released after it was made certain he is not involved in any matters harming Egyptian security. No charges were filed against him," said the official, who declined to be named.
That sounds like he somehow left the money behind in his cell or the interview room or something.
Dababesh, a senior member of Hamas's internal security service, was detained on September 13 upon landing in Cairo airport from Saudi Arabia.

Egypt is one of two Arab states to have a peace accord with Israel and has supported the Jewish state's efforts to isolate Gazoo. The Egyptian-Gazoo border is tightly controlled to prevent smuggling from the Sinai desert.

Cairo has also tried, without success, to heal a violent schism between Hamas and the US-backed government of Paleostinian President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas, which holds sway in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Abu Zuhri said at least 40 members of Hamas and other Paleostinian factions remained in Egyptian custody, and called for them to be freed too.

"We hope that the (Dababesh) release will be the first step toward righting relations between Hamas and the Egyptian leadership and bringing an end to detention of Paleostinians in their jails," he said.

A Paleostinian fisherman was rubbed out by the Israeli navy off the blockaded coast of the Gazoo Strip yesterday, medics in the enclave said.

"Fisherman Mohamed Bakr died by a bullet by the Israeli navy today in the sea north of the Gazoo Strip," said Adham Abu Selmiya, who heads the Paleostinian territory's medical services.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said the fisherman was in restricted waters "heading towards Israel."

"Troops ordered him to turn back. As he refused to obey they fired warning shots and then shots towards his boat," she said.
Posted by:Fred

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