Israel arrests senior Palestinian cleric in Jerusalem

[Caleb]

Israel arrests senior Palestinian cleric in Jerusalem
Reuters
August 6, 2005

Israeli police arrested a senior Palestinian cleric near Jerusalem's Old City on Saturday, his son said.

Israel Radio said Sheikh Hamed Bitawi was arrested because he did not have a permit to enter Israel and that police were also checking whether he used inciting language in a sermon he delivered at the mosque several weeks previously.

Bitawi, 61, was detained after the end of prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Bitawi is an influential figure in the Islamic movement in the West Bank city of Nablus. He is not known to be a member of any militant group.

"We know that he was at prayers at Al Aqsa and since seven o'clock (1600 GMT) we have no contact with him at all," his son, Ahmed, told Reuters.

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[Behind the Aegis]

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