RAMALLAH, West Bank, 4 June 2008 — An Israeli human rights organization yesterday said that the Israeli internal intelligence agency, Shin Bet, questioned one of its senior officials about the meetings between his organization and Hamas officials in Gaza Strip.
The Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) said the Shin Bet also questioned Salah Haj Yahya, an Arab who lives in Taybeh inside Israel, and the director of the mobile clinics run by PHR, on the activities of the organization, its budget, the identity of its donors, and details about others employed by the organization.
Among those the PHR officials met were the Hamas speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council and the minister of health. During the questioning, the Shin Bet asked about Yahya’s membership in the Al-Aqsa Foundation, and comments he had made in the media. He was also asked for his telephone numbers.
Yahya had organized teams of doctors who are members in PHR, during two visits to the Gaza Strip this year. They met with medical professionals and relevant officials, and assessed the humanitarian conditions in the Strip. The doctors also carried out medical procedures at two of the main hospitals in the Strip.
Meanwhile, Israeli Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz yesterday said that giving back the Golan Heights to Syria would in effect allow Iran a military presence right on the border with Israel. Mofaz said during a tour of the Golan Heights that “as of today, the renewal of indirect talks with Syria is important in and of itself,” but added that “distance between speaking and giving something up is very long.”
“We don’t need to stir a frenzy over every expression of Syrian pining. The Syrians are not yet ready for peace, ceding the Heights would mean having the Iranians here, in the Golan Heights, overlooking the Sea of Galilee. The Syrians are up to their necks in terrorism, and we need to know if they are genuinely seeking peace,” said Mofaz.
