29 feb 2016
Sources close to the family of the Palestinian martyr Omar al-Nayif published on Sunday a photo for him showing blood on his face. This proves that he was directly targeted during assassination inside the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria, they added.
The photo refuted rumors claiming that there was no blood on his face, and raised questions on the purpose that made certain parties minimize the seriousness of the assassination.
Nayif was murdered last Friday in the Palestinian Embassy in Bulgaria’s capital Sofia. Israeli Mossad was accused in the first place. The family of the martyr also accused the Palestinian Authority as well as its Embassy of collusion with the Israeli occupation in assassinating their son.
For his part, the Palestinian Ambassador to Sofia said that “Nayif was found with no shooting or beating signs on his body”.
The photo refuted rumors claiming that there was no blood on his face, and raised questions on the purpose that made certain parties minimize the seriousness of the assassination.
Nayif was murdered last Friday in the Palestinian Embassy in Bulgaria’s capital Sofia. Israeli Mossad was accused in the first place. The family of the martyr also accused the Palestinian Authority as well as its Embassy of collusion with the Israeli occupation in assassinating their son.
For his part, the Palestinian Ambassador to Sofia said that “Nayif was found with no shooting or beating signs on his body”.
27 feb 2016
Deputy head of Hamas's political bureau Ismail Haneyya has mourned the death of ex-detainee Omar Nayef and condemned his assassination inside the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria as "one of the greatest shameful incidents."
In a festival held by Hamas in Gaza on Friday, Haneyya called on the Palestinian Authority (PA) to assume its responsibility for unraveling the mystery of the crime and bringing the perpetrators to justice.
He emphasized that the Mossad, which he described as "the Zionist terrorist arm," takes advantage of the weakness of the PA and the security collaboration with it as well as the international complicity to commit crimes against the Palestinians.
In another context, the Hamas official hailed journalist Mohamed al-Qeiq for achieving a victory against his jailer and extracting a deal leading to his release, stressing that he was fighting the occupation on behalf of the Palestinian people and prisoners.
In a festival held by Hamas in Gaza on Friday, Haneyya called on the Palestinian Authority (PA) to assume its responsibility for unraveling the mystery of the crime and bringing the perpetrators to justice.
He emphasized that the Mossad, which he described as "the Zionist terrorist arm," takes advantage of the weakness of the PA and the security collaboration with it as well as the international complicity to commit crimes against the Palestinians.
In another context, the Hamas official hailed journalist Mohamed al-Qeiq for achieving a victory against his jailer and extracting a deal leading to his release, stressing that he was fighting the occupation on behalf of the Palestinian people and prisoners.
Israel’s assassination of the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef in the Palestinian embassy in Sofia has triggered angry reactions in Palestine and Arab countries.
The Arab Organization for Human Rights UK (AOHR) has strongly condemned in a statement issued Friday Omar’s assassination at the hands of unidentified assailants believed to be Mossad agents.
There is no doubt that Israeli Mossad is behind the assassination, as it used to carry out similar crimes in different countries in total disregard of international laws and conventions, the statement said.
The organization held the Palestinian embassy and the Bulgarian authorities responsible for not providing enough protection for him and for facilitating the crime. Hamas Movement, for its part, said that Israel bears the full responsibility for Omar’s killing, calling for the resignation of the Palestinian foreign minister and the dismissal of the Palestinian ambassador in Bulgaria.
Spokesman for the group Sami Abu Zuhri called for the prosecution of the Palestinian ambassador Ahmed al-Madbouh as the crime was carried out in the embassy headquarters. In its turn, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) held "the Zionist state and the Mossad fully responsible for the despicable crime of targeting comrade Omar Nayef Zayed.”
"We also hold the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria responsible for failing to protect him, and the Bulgarian government and its security forces who pursued comrade Nayef Zayed for arrest and imprisonment for over three months,” the statement said. “We note the full responsibility of the Palestinian Authority at the highest levels for failing to protect comrade Nayef Zayed from assassination, up to and including PA President Mahmoud Abbas, Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki and Ambassador Ahmad al-Madbouh.”
The PFLP vowed “to pursue in all ways the truth of the assassination of the martyr Omar Nayef Zayed, to stand by the family of our martyred comrade, and to hold accountable those responsible for his targeting and assassination.” The PFLP Secretary General Ahmed Saadat considered Omar’s assassination as a premeditated crime, accusing the Palestinian embassy of collusion in the Israeli heinous crime.
The assassination is a part of the PA security coordination with Israeli occupation, Saadat charged. The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) warned of the serious impacts of Omar’s assassination on Palestinian ex-prisoners.
The group stressed the urgent need for providing the Palestinian former prisoners with the needed protection, calling for investigating the assassination circumstances. Along the same line, the Palestinians in Europe Conference strongly condemned the crime targeting the Palestinian ex-prisoner Omar Nayef, considering it a “dangerous precedent".
The conference called for serious investigation into the crime and for holding accountable those responsible for the assassination including the Palestinian embassy and the Bulgarian authorities. The Palestinian Authority (PA) had earlier formed a committee to travel to the Bulgarian capital Sofia to investigate the circumstances that led to the death of ex-detainee Omar Nayef at the Palestinian embassy.
Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994.
In a serious move, the Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police. Since then, Omar Nayef had taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel.
Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupied Jerusalem. During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days".
Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country. After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
The Arab Organization for Human Rights UK (AOHR) has strongly condemned in a statement issued Friday Omar’s assassination at the hands of unidentified assailants believed to be Mossad agents.
There is no doubt that Israeli Mossad is behind the assassination, as it used to carry out similar crimes in different countries in total disregard of international laws and conventions, the statement said.
The organization held the Palestinian embassy and the Bulgarian authorities responsible for not providing enough protection for him and for facilitating the crime. Hamas Movement, for its part, said that Israel bears the full responsibility for Omar’s killing, calling for the resignation of the Palestinian foreign minister and the dismissal of the Palestinian ambassador in Bulgaria.
Spokesman for the group Sami Abu Zuhri called for the prosecution of the Palestinian ambassador Ahmed al-Madbouh as the crime was carried out in the embassy headquarters. In its turn, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) held "the Zionist state and the Mossad fully responsible for the despicable crime of targeting comrade Omar Nayef Zayed.”
"We also hold the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria responsible for failing to protect him, and the Bulgarian government and its security forces who pursued comrade Nayef Zayed for arrest and imprisonment for over three months,” the statement said. “We note the full responsibility of the Palestinian Authority at the highest levels for failing to protect comrade Nayef Zayed from assassination, up to and including PA President Mahmoud Abbas, Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki and Ambassador Ahmad al-Madbouh.”
The PFLP vowed “to pursue in all ways the truth of the assassination of the martyr Omar Nayef Zayed, to stand by the family of our martyred comrade, and to hold accountable those responsible for his targeting and assassination.” The PFLP Secretary General Ahmed Saadat considered Omar’s assassination as a premeditated crime, accusing the Palestinian embassy of collusion in the Israeli heinous crime.
The assassination is a part of the PA security coordination with Israeli occupation, Saadat charged. The Palestinian Prisoners Society (PPS) warned of the serious impacts of Omar’s assassination on Palestinian ex-prisoners.
The group stressed the urgent need for providing the Palestinian former prisoners with the needed protection, calling for investigating the assassination circumstances. Along the same line, the Palestinians in Europe Conference strongly condemned the crime targeting the Palestinian ex-prisoner Omar Nayef, considering it a “dangerous precedent".
The conference called for serious investigation into the crime and for holding accountable those responsible for the assassination including the Palestinian embassy and the Bulgarian authorities. The Palestinian Authority (PA) had earlier formed a committee to travel to the Bulgarian capital Sofia to investigate the circumstances that led to the death of ex-detainee Omar Nayef at the Palestinian embassy.
Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994.
In a serious move, the Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police. Since then, Omar Nayef had taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel.
Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupied Jerusalem. During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days".
Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country. After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
26 feb 2016
The brother of Omar Nayef, Hamza, held on Friday the Israeli Intelligence Service responsible for his brother’s assassination at the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria, blaming, at the same time, the Palestinian embassy for not providing enough protection for him.
Hamza Nayef told the PIC reporter that “a group of unidentified persons raided the embassy and assassinated Omar.”
Omar was in the garden inside the embassy headquarters when he was brutally beaten, which led to his death, Hamza said. Omar's wife received a call from the embassy informing her that he had been found dead in the garden covered with blood, and that an investigation was opened into the incident, he added.
"We hold Israel fully responsible for Omar’s assassination and we also blame the Palestinian embassy for not protecting him and facilitating his murder", according to his statements. “My brother was being directly and indirectly threatened along the past three months by some individuals at the embassy, especially the ambassador, who repeatedly asked him to leave the headquarters where he was taking cover after being threatened by the Mossad,” he continued referring to Israel's overseas intelligence agency.
Hamza accused security guards present at the embassy of “collusion” in his brother’s assassination. Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994.
In a serious move, the Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police.
Since then, Omar Nayef has taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel.
Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupation Jerusalem.
During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days". Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country.
After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
Hamza Nayef told the PIC reporter that “a group of unidentified persons raided the embassy and assassinated Omar.”
Omar was in the garden inside the embassy headquarters when he was brutally beaten, which led to his death, Hamza said. Omar's wife received a call from the embassy informing her that he had been found dead in the garden covered with blood, and that an investigation was opened into the incident, he added.
"We hold Israel fully responsible for Omar’s assassination and we also blame the Palestinian embassy for not protecting him and facilitating his murder", according to his statements. “My brother was being directly and indirectly threatened along the past three months by some individuals at the embassy, especially the ambassador, who repeatedly asked him to leave the headquarters where he was taking cover after being threatened by the Mossad,” he continued referring to Israel's overseas intelligence agency.
Hamza accused security guards present at the embassy of “collusion” in his brother’s assassination. Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994.
In a serious move, the Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police.
Since then, Omar Nayef has taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel.
Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupation Jerusalem.
During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days". Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country.
After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has formed a committee to travel to the Bulgarian capital Sofia to investigate the circumstances that led to the death of ex-detainee Omar Nayef at the Palestinian embassy.
PA president Mahmoud Abbas condemned his death as "a reprehensible crime," and ordered an investigation into the reported murder of Nayef.
The Palestinian ministry of foreign affairs, for its part, said it launched an investigation into the incident and would stay in contact with its embassy and the local authorities in Sofia.
Nayef, who escaped from Israeli custody after being indicted for a 1986 murder, was found dead on Friday morning at the Palestinian embassy in Sofia.
Palestinian parties have accused the Mossad of assassinating Nayef, who took refuge in the embassy late last year fearing extradition to Israel.
PA president Mahmoud Abbas condemned his death as "a reprehensible crime," and ordered an investigation into the reported murder of Nayef.
The Palestinian ministry of foreign affairs, for its part, said it launched an investigation into the incident and would stay in contact with its embassy and the local authorities in Sofia.
Nayef, who escaped from Israeli custody after being indicted for a 1986 murder, was found dead on Friday morning at the Palestinian embassy in Sofia.
Palestinian parties have accused the Mossad of assassinating Nayef, who took refuge in the embassy late last year fearing extradition to Israel.
Omar and hiss wife
An escaped Palestinian political prisoner has been assassinated in Bulgaria, say his family.
Omar Nayef Zayed was found dead inside the Palestinian Authority’s embassy in Sofia on Friday.
Omar’s brother Hamza told the news publication Al-Hadf that Omar’s wife was informed by the PA that an unidentified group raided the embassy and murdered Zayed.
The PA’s deputy minister of foreign affairs Taysir Jaradat said that embassy staff found Zayed lying in the garden covered in blood, the Ma’an News Agency reported.
Ahmed, another brother of Zayed, told Ma’an that the killers “threw him out of the embassy’s balcony, killing him.”
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas reportedly ordered an investigation into Zayed’s death. Issa Qaraqe, the PA’s prisoners affairs chief, accused the Israeli spy agency Mossad of killing Zayed.
Zayed escaped from Israeli detention 25 years ago and had lived in Bulgaria for more than two decades. In December, Israel demanded he be extradited, so he sought shelter at the embassy.
PA involvement?“Omar’s blood will not be wasted in vain,” his brother Hamza said, adding that those responsible for Zayed’s assassination “must pay the price.”
But the family insists that Israel is not the only one to blame.
Zayed was being “threatened by some individuals at the embassy – especially the ambassador – who demanded him to leave the embassy,” his brother Ahmed told Ma’an. Ahmed also accused security guards present at the embassy of “collaborating” with his brother’s assassination.
Zayed’s brother Hamza told Al-Hadaf that Palestinian Authority ambassador Ahmad al-Madbouh said to Zayed that they would kill him by poisoning his food and that a plane would be waiting to return him to Israel.
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine accused the Mossad of murdering Zayed but also blamed “the Bulgarian government and security forces who pursued Comrade Nayef Zayed for arrest and imprisonment for over three months.”
The Marxist group said the PA was responsible “for failing to protect Comrade Nayef Zayed from assassination,” even as “the highest officials of the Palestinian Authority met with the highest officials of the Bulgarian state in Ramallah, with no apparent demands made for our pursued comrade.”
Fled occupationIsraeli media on Friday made unsubstantiated insinuations that Zayed had committed suicide.
It was reported in the Tel Aviv daily Haaretz that Zayed perhaps “fell from a high floor.” The Israeli foreign ministry said that “although Israel had asked for his extradition, it learned of his death in the media and is currently studying the information.”
Zayed had been given a life sentence by an Israeli military court for his alleged involvement in the killing of an Israeli settler, for which he was arrested in 1986.
Zayed launched a hunger strike in 1990. While being treated in a Bethlehem hospital, he escaped Israeli custody and fled the country.
Zayed reached Bulgaria in 1994, after moving around the Middle East in secret. His wife Rania and their three children are Bulgarian citizens.
On 15 December, the Israeli embassy in Bulgaria officially requested his extradition. He was given 72 hours to turn himself in, but Zayed refused.
Embassies enjoy protection under the 1961 Vienna convention, and Bulgaria recognized Palestine as a state in 1988.
History of kidnapping and assassinationIsrael has long targeted Palestinians all over the world. The scholar, resistance activist and novelist Ghassan Kanafani was assassinated by an Israeli car bomb in Lebanon in 1972.
Dirar Abu Sisi, the deputy engineer of the only power plant in the Gaza Strip, was kidnapped by the Mossad while on an overnight train from Kharkiv to Kiev in February 2011.
He was handcuffed and tortured, forced into a coffin and deported by a plane to Israel where he is now held captive.
An escaped Palestinian political prisoner has been assassinated in Bulgaria, say his family.
Omar Nayef Zayed was found dead inside the Palestinian Authority’s embassy in Sofia on Friday.
Omar’s brother Hamza told the news publication Al-Hadf that Omar’s wife was informed by the PA that an unidentified group raided the embassy and murdered Zayed.
The PA’s deputy minister of foreign affairs Taysir Jaradat said that embassy staff found Zayed lying in the garden covered in blood, the Ma’an News Agency reported.
Ahmed, another brother of Zayed, told Ma’an that the killers “threw him out of the embassy’s balcony, killing him.”
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas reportedly ordered an investigation into Zayed’s death. Issa Qaraqe, the PA’s prisoners affairs chief, accused the Israeli spy agency Mossad of killing Zayed.
Zayed escaped from Israeli detention 25 years ago and had lived in Bulgaria for more than two decades. In December, Israel demanded he be extradited, so he sought shelter at the embassy.
PA involvement?“Omar’s blood will not be wasted in vain,” his brother Hamza said, adding that those responsible for Zayed’s assassination “must pay the price.”
But the family insists that Israel is not the only one to blame.
Zayed was being “threatened by some individuals at the embassy – especially the ambassador – who demanded him to leave the embassy,” his brother Ahmed told Ma’an. Ahmed also accused security guards present at the embassy of “collaborating” with his brother’s assassination.
Zayed’s brother Hamza told Al-Hadaf that Palestinian Authority ambassador Ahmad al-Madbouh said to Zayed that they would kill him by poisoning his food and that a plane would be waiting to return him to Israel.
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine accused the Mossad of murdering Zayed but also blamed “the Bulgarian government and security forces who pursued Comrade Nayef Zayed for arrest and imprisonment for over three months.”
The Marxist group said the PA was responsible “for failing to protect Comrade Nayef Zayed from assassination,” even as “the highest officials of the Palestinian Authority met with the highest officials of the Bulgarian state in Ramallah, with no apparent demands made for our pursued comrade.”
Fled occupationIsraeli media on Friday made unsubstantiated insinuations that Zayed had committed suicide.
It was reported in the Tel Aviv daily Haaretz that Zayed perhaps “fell from a high floor.” The Israeli foreign ministry said that “although Israel had asked for his extradition, it learned of his death in the media and is currently studying the information.”
Zayed had been given a life sentence by an Israeli military court for his alleged involvement in the killing of an Israeli settler, for which he was arrested in 1986.
Zayed launched a hunger strike in 1990. While being treated in a Bethlehem hospital, he escaped Israeli custody and fled the country.
Zayed reached Bulgaria in 1994, after moving around the Middle East in secret. His wife Rania and their three children are Bulgarian citizens.
On 15 December, the Israeli embassy in Bulgaria officially requested his extradition. He was given 72 hours to turn himself in, but Zayed refused.
Embassies enjoy protection under the 1961 Vienna convention, and Bulgaria recognized Palestine as a state in 1988.
History of kidnapping and assassinationIsrael has long targeted Palestinians all over the world. The scholar, resistance activist and novelist Ghassan Kanafani was assassinated by an Israeli car bomb in Lebanon in 1972.
Dirar Abu Sisi, the deputy engineer of the only power plant in the Gaza Strip, was kidnapped by the Mossad while on an overnight train from Kharkiv to Kiev in February 2011.
He was handcuffed and tortured, forced into a coffin and deported by a plane to Israel where he is now held captive.
Omar Nayef Zayed, convicted of the murder of yeshiva student Eliyahu Amadi in 1986, was able to escape prison and flee to Bulgaria; he arrived gravely wounded to the Palestinian embassy in Sofia, where he died.
Wanted terrorist Omar Nayef Zayed was found dead at the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria, local media reported on Friday morning.
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) member Zayed, 51, was convicted along with his brother and another Palestinian of the murder of yeshiva student Eliyahu Amadi at Jerusalem's Old City in 1986, when he was 22 years old.
He was sentenced to life in prison, and four years later went on a hunger strike. After 40 days he was transferred to a mental hospital in Bethlehem to receive treatment. Then, in May 1990, he managed to escape the hospital and hide until he was able to flee Israel to Arab countries - where he lived until 1994, when he settled in Bulgaria. The 51 years old, originally from the Palestinian village of Al-Yamun near Jenin in the West Bank, got married in Bulgaria and had three children, all Bulgarian nationals.
His brother, Ahmed Zayed, and the other Palestinian were among those released in a 2011 prisoner exchange deal for IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for five years.
Zayed arrived at the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria two months ago after learning he was wanted by Bulgarian police after Israel demanded Sofia to extradite him in December. Bulgarian police even raided his home, but arrived after he had left it.
According to Palestinian sources, after receiving Israel's extradition request for Zayed, Bulgarian authorities sought to detain him for 72 hours in order to deliberate on the request, but he escaped to the embassy before they could get to him.
Bulgarian authorities then set Zayed an ultimatum to force him out of the embassy, but he refused. Meanwhile, Israel was holding a quiet dialogue with Sofia in an effort to bring the affair to an end.
Palestinian Ambassador to Bulgaria Ahmad Madbough set Zayed an ultimatum of his own, giving him 24 hours to turn himself in to Bulgarian authorities - to no avail.
His brother, Hamza, said Zayed would not turn himself in or leave the embassy building because he was tortured and beaten in Israeli prison and was put in isolation for 60 days.
Bulgarian news websites reported that at 7:35am Friday, emergency services received a call to the embassy for a man seeking urgent medical treatment. Zayed, who was found at the embassy's back yard with critical injuries to his upper body, was rushed to a local hospital in Sofia, where was declared dead.
On Friday, Bulgaria's chief prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov told reporters there was evidence Nayef had been living at the embassy. He also said Nayef had been alive when medics arrived at the embassy but died later.
The Palestinian deputy foreign minister, Tayseer Jaradat, said Zayed was not killed from the shooting in his direction, while PFLP claimed he was shot in the head. One of the reports in Bulgarian media claimed Zayed was pushed to his death from the fourth floor of the building. The Palestinian ambassador granted access to investigators, who sealed off the embassy building.
Prosecutors said in an initial statement they had been alerted by a representative of the Palestinian mission in Bulgaria "about a man who died as a result of violence" but a spokeswoman for the prosecutors later said no signs of violence were found on his body.
Official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had ordered an investigation into the circumstances of Nayef's death.
"The president has condemned the crime in the strongest terms possible and has ordered the members of the (investigation) committee to travel immediately to Bulgaria to discover what happened," WAFA said.
Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah said the presidency would pursue the issue with Bulgarian authorities.
While Abbas avoided pointing the finger at Israel, PFLP and the head of the Palestinian Prisoners Club and former minister Issa Karaka, did blame Israel for Zayed's death.
It's safe to assume, however, that the Palestinian claim the Mossad is behind Zayed's death is baseless. Israel would not dare get entangled with an assassination after filing an official request for his extradition, and certainly not while Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is in Israel on a work trip, during which he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin.
Borisov, who returned from Israel late on Thursday, said Nayef's extradition had been brought up in meetings by both the Palestinian and Israeli authorities.
"I told both sides that Bulgaria respects the rule of law and will follow the legal procedures in the case," he told reporters in parliament on Friday.
Sources involved in the affair said "there is no connection to Israel." They claimed it was more likely that Zayed angered Palestinian or local authorities.
Israel's Foreign Ministry said that although Israel had asked for his extradition, it learned of his death in the media and is currently studying the information.
Recently, Jenin governor Ibrahim Ramadan sent a letter to the Palestinian ambassador in Bulgaria, asking him to provide Zayed with any help he needs because of what he called pressure from Israel on the Bulgarian government to force the embassy to turn him in to local authorities.
PFLP members have also recently demanded members of the Eurpean Union's parliament to provide Zayed with protection.
Wanted terrorist Omar Nayef Zayed was found dead at the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria, local media reported on Friday morning.
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) member Zayed, 51, was convicted along with his brother and another Palestinian of the murder of yeshiva student Eliyahu Amadi at Jerusalem's Old City in 1986, when he was 22 years old.
He was sentenced to life in prison, and four years later went on a hunger strike. After 40 days he was transferred to a mental hospital in Bethlehem to receive treatment. Then, in May 1990, he managed to escape the hospital and hide until he was able to flee Israel to Arab countries - where he lived until 1994, when he settled in Bulgaria. The 51 years old, originally from the Palestinian village of Al-Yamun near Jenin in the West Bank, got married in Bulgaria and had three children, all Bulgarian nationals.
His brother, Ahmed Zayed, and the other Palestinian were among those released in a 2011 prisoner exchange deal for IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for five years.
Zayed arrived at the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria two months ago after learning he was wanted by Bulgarian police after Israel demanded Sofia to extradite him in December. Bulgarian police even raided his home, but arrived after he had left it.
According to Palestinian sources, after receiving Israel's extradition request for Zayed, Bulgarian authorities sought to detain him for 72 hours in order to deliberate on the request, but he escaped to the embassy before they could get to him.
Bulgarian authorities then set Zayed an ultimatum to force him out of the embassy, but he refused. Meanwhile, Israel was holding a quiet dialogue with Sofia in an effort to bring the affair to an end.
Palestinian Ambassador to Bulgaria Ahmad Madbough set Zayed an ultimatum of his own, giving him 24 hours to turn himself in to Bulgarian authorities - to no avail.
His brother, Hamza, said Zayed would not turn himself in or leave the embassy building because he was tortured and beaten in Israeli prison and was put in isolation for 60 days.
Bulgarian news websites reported that at 7:35am Friday, emergency services received a call to the embassy for a man seeking urgent medical treatment. Zayed, who was found at the embassy's back yard with critical injuries to his upper body, was rushed to a local hospital in Sofia, where was declared dead.
On Friday, Bulgaria's chief prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov told reporters there was evidence Nayef had been living at the embassy. He also said Nayef had been alive when medics arrived at the embassy but died later.
The Palestinian deputy foreign minister, Tayseer Jaradat, said Zayed was not killed from the shooting in his direction, while PFLP claimed he was shot in the head. One of the reports in Bulgarian media claimed Zayed was pushed to his death from the fourth floor of the building. The Palestinian ambassador granted access to investigators, who sealed off the embassy building.
Prosecutors said in an initial statement they had been alerted by a representative of the Palestinian mission in Bulgaria "about a man who died as a result of violence" but a spokeswoman for the prosecutors later said no signs of violence were found on his body.
Official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had ordered an investigation into the circumstances of Nayef's death.
"The president has condemned the crime in the strongest terms possible and has ordered the members of the (investigation) committee to travel immediately to Bulgaria to discover what happened," WAFA said.
Abbas's spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah said the presidency would pursue the issue with Bulgarian authorities.
While Abbas avoided pointing the finger at Israel, PFLP and the head of the Palestinian Prisoners Club and former minister Issa Karaka, did blame Israel for Zayed's death.
It's safe to assume, however, that the Palestinian claim the Mossad is behind Zayed's death is baseless. Israel would not dare get entangled with an assassination after filing an official request for his extradition, and certainly not while Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is in Israel on a work trip, during which he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin.
Borisov, who returned from Israel late on Thursday, said Nayef's extradition had been brought up in meetings by both the Palestinian and Israeli authorities.
"I told both sides that Bulgaria respects the rule of law and will follow the legal procedures in the case," he told reporters in parliament on Friday.
Sources involved in the affair said "there is no connection to Israel." They claimed it was more likely that Zayed angered Palestinian or local authorities.
Israel's Foreign Ministry said that although Israel had asked for his extradition, it learned of his death in the media and is currently studying the information.
Recently, Jenin governor Ibrahim Ramadan sent a letter to the Palestinian ambassador in Bulgaria, asking him to provide Zayed with any help he needs because of what he called pressure from Israel on the Bulgarian government to force the embassy to turn him in to local authorities.
PFLP members have also recently demanded members of the Eurpean Union's parliament to provide Zayed with protection.
The Palestinian ex-prisoner Omar Nayef was assassinated Friday morning in the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria, family sources revealed.
Imad Nayef, Omar’s brother, told the PIC reporter that the family was informed today morning that their son was assassinated in the Palestinian embassy in Sofia without revealing any further information.
Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994. In a serious move, Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police.
Since then, Omar Nayef has taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel. Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupation Jerusalem.
During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days". Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country. After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
Imad Nayef, Omar’s brother, told the PIC reporter that the family was informed today morning that their son was assassinated in the Palestinian embassy in Sofia without revealing any further information.
Earlier in December, the Israeli ambassador to Sofia asked the Bulgarian authorities to hand over the Palestinian former prisoner Omar Nayef who lives with his family in Bulgaria since 1994. In a serious move, Bulgarian authorities detained Omar's older son in order to exert more pressure on him after he refused to hand himself in to the police.
Since then, Omar Nayef has taken refuge in the Palestinian embassy to escape extradition to Israel. Born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Omar was convicted and sentenced by an Israeli court to life in prison in 1986 for carrying out an anti-occupation attack in occupation Jerusalem.
During his detention, Omar "had been beaten and tortured in prison. He was once put in solitary confinement for 60 days". Yet, in 1990, Nayef was able to escape from his guards during a hospital visit and eventually made it out of the country. After living in various other Arab countries for four years, he moved to Bulgaria in 1994 and was later granted permanent residency.
11 feb 2016
Palestinian activists on Wednesday rallied outside the Red Cross headquarters in Jenin to urge the Palestinian embassy in Bulgaria not to extradite Omar al-Nayef to the Israeli occupation.
The activists spoke out against Israeli attempts to arrest Palestinians taking refuge overseas. Bulgarian authorities gave the Palestinian embassy, where Nayef has taken refuge for over three weeks, 72 hours to turn Nayef in so that he could be brought before a Bulgarian court.
Omar Nayef escaped from Israeli custody 26 years ago. The Israeli occupation authorities requested that the Bulgarian government extradite him.
Nayef, a native of Jenin province, is married to a Bulgarian wife and is the father of three children.
The activists spoke out against Israeli attempts to arrest Palestinians taking refuge overseas. Bulgarian authorities gave the Palestinian embassy, where Nayef has taken refuge for over three weeks, 72 hours to turn Nayef in so that he could be brought before a Bulgarian court.
Omar Nayef escaped from Israeli custody 26 years ago. The Israeli occupation authorities requested that the Bulgarian government extradite him.
Nayef, a native of Jenin province, is married to a Bulgarian wife and is the father of three children.
21 dec 2015
An escaped political prisoner whose extradition has been sought by Israel has taken refuge in the Palestinian Authority’s embassy in Bulgaria.
Omar Nayef Zayed escaped from Israeli detention 25 years ago has lived in Bulgaria for more than two decades.
News that the 52-year-old is being sought for extradition by Israel is causing deep concern among Palestinians living in Europe.
Zayed, born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, was arrested in Jerusalem during 1986. After a trial in an Israeli military court, he was convicted of involvement in the killing of an Israeli settler and given a life sentence.
In 1990, he launched a hunger strike which lasted 40 days. While receiving treatment in a Bethlehem hospital, he escaped from the hospital and fled Palestine.
After traveling secretly in the Middle East, he entered Bulgaria in 1994. He later married in that country; his wife and three children are Bulgarian citizens.
Zayed runs a Palestinian grocery store in the capital Sofia and is well-known among Palestinians living in Bulgaria.
On 15 December, the Israeli embassy in Bulgaria officially requested the extradition of Zayed to Tel Aviv, labeling him a “fugitive from justice.” According to the website al-Araby al-Jadeed, the Bulgarian police gave him 72 hours to turn himself in.
Police came to his home last Thursday, but Zayed was not there; his son was briefly arrested and then released.
“The most important thing for us, his family, and for Palestinians, is that the government of Bulgaria does not extradite Omar to Tel Aviv,” said Hamza Nayef Zayed, Omar’s brother and a former prisoner himself.
Embassies enjoy protection under the 1961 Vienna convention [PDF]. Bulgaria has recognized Palestine as a state since 1988.
As a result, the PA’s embassy in Sofia has the same status as that representing any other state recognized by Bulgaria.
Political prisoner
The demand to extradite Zayed is based on an extradition treaty between Israel and the 47-country Council of Europe.
Quds Press has reported that Israel claims that the statute of limitations on Zayed’s case stretches until 2020, 30 years from the date of his escape.
However, the extradition treaty allows “political offenses” to be excluded from its scope.
As Zayed was convicted in a military court, administered by an occupying power, he can certainly be considered a political prisoner.
He was imprisoned in the context of an anti-colonial struggle. Israel’s military occupation has imposed thousands of orders on Palestinians, including the prohibition of demonstrations, political parties and social and cultural unions and associations.
By seeking his extradition, Israel is violating a series of agreements it signed with the Palestine Liberation Organization during the 1990s. Under those agreements, all Palestinians arrested before the formation of the Palestinian Authority in 1994 were to be released.
“What we are demanding is Omar’s freedom and safety at home, where we have been living in peace,” said Rania Zayed, Omar’s wife. “The case is old, expired and invalid. It should have been dropped long ago based on the agreements between the PLO leadership and Israel.”
Mass imprisonment
Despite Israel’s frequent refusal to acknowledge or respect these commitments, the very existence of agreements regarding the status of prisoners underlines the fundamentally political nature of Israel’s imprisonment of Palestinians.
A total of 30 prisoners arrested before 1994 remain in Israeli jails, according to the Palestinian prisoners’ rights group Addameer. They are among more than 6,700 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Since the 1967 occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, more than 800,000 Palestinians have been jailed. Dozens of Palestinians are arrested daily, making mass imprisonment a fact of life for Palestinians under occupation.
Palestinians under Israeli military occupation are tried in military courts. In almost every case, these courts rubber-stamp charges brought by the Israeli authorities.
Palestinians face torture on a routine basis in an attempt to extract confessions and other information from detainees under interrogation. This evidence produced under torture is regularly introduced and accepted in Israeli military courts.
Convictions in Israeli military courts fall far short of the international standards for fair trials.
Zayed’s case also highlights the right to escape unjust incarceration.
The right of prisoners of war to escape is enshrined in the Geneva Conventions. Palestinians in Israeli jails have long demanded to be recognized as prisoners of war.
Bulgaria and Israel
The current Bulgarian government is composed largely of right-wing parties that are strongly supportive of Israel.
In 2014, the then foreign ministers of Bulgaria and Israel, Kristian Vigenin and Avigdor Lieberman, met. Vigenin stated that “our friendship lies on deep historic roots, which we are now further developing for the people of our nations.”
At the same meeting, a “new phase” of increased security coordination between these countries was announced.
Such security coordination is now coming at a potentially high cost to Palestinians in Europe.
Zayed’s wife said her husband has already suffered enough.
“Is it not enough that Omar was forced to leave his homeland and his family and live in exile?” she said. “Now he is once again facing prosecution. This injustice must end.”
Charlotte Kates is the international coordinator of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, which is campaigning against Zayed’s extradition, and a member of the organizing collective of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel. She also coordinates the international committee of the National Lawyers Guild.
Omar Nayef Zayed escaped from Israeli detention 25 years ago has lived in Bulgaria for more than two decades.
News that the 52-year-old is being sought for extradition by Israel is causing deep concern among Palestinians living in Europe.
Zayed, born in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, was arrested in Jerusalem during 1986. After a trial in an Israeli military court, he was convicted of involvement in the killing of an Israeli settler and given a life sentence.
In 1990, he launched a hunger strike which lasted 40 days. While receiving treatment in a Bethlehem hospital, he escaped from the hospital and fled Palestine.
After traveling secretly in the Middle East, he entered Bulgaria in 1994. He later married in that country; his wife and three children are Bulgarian citizens.
Zayed runs a Palestinian grocery store in the capital Sofia and is well-known among Palestinians living in Bulgaria.
On 15 December, the Israeli embassy in Bulgaria officially requested the extradition of Zayed to Tel Aviv, labeling him a “fugitive from justice.” According to the website al-Araby al-Jadeed, the Bulgarian police gave him 72 hours to turn himself in.
Police came to his home last Thursday, but Zayed was not there; his son was briefly arrested and then released.
“The most important thing for us, his family, and for Palestinians, is that the government of Bulgaria does not extradite Omar to Tel Aviv,” said Hamza Nayef Zayed, Omar’s brother and a former prisoner himself.
Embassies enjoy protection under the 1961 Vienna convention [PDF]. Bulgaria has recognized Palestine as a state since 1988.
As a result, the PA’s embassy in Sofia has the same status as that representing any other state recognized by Bulgaria.
Political prisoner
The demand to extradite Zayed is based on an extradition treaty between Israel and the 47-country Council of Europe.
Quds Press has reported that Israel claims that the statute of limitations on Zayed’s case stretches until 2020, 30 years from the date of his escape.
However, the extradition treaty allows “political offenses” to be excluded from its scope.
As Zayed was convicted in a military court, administered by an occupying power, he can certainly be considered a political prisoner.
He was imprisoned in the context of an anti-colonial struggle. Israel’s military occupation has imposed thousands of orders on Palestinians, including the prohibition of demonstrations, political parties and social and cultural unions and associations.
By seeking his extradition, Israel is violating a series of agreements it signed with the Palestine Liberation Organization during the 1990s. Under those agreements, all Palestinians arrested before the formation of the Palestinian Authority in 1994 were to be released.
“What we are demanding is Omar’s freedom and safety at home, where we have been living in peace,” said Rania Zayed, Omar’s wife. “The case is old, expired and invalid. It should have been dropped long ago based on the agreements between the PLO leadership and Israel.”
Mass imprisonment
Despite Israel’s frequent refusal to acknowledge or respect these commitments, the very existence of agreements regarding the status of prisoners underlines the fundamentally political nature of Israel’s imprisonment of Palestinians.
A total of 30 prisoners arrested before 1994 remain in Israeli jails, according to the Palestinian prisoners’ rights group Addameer. They are among more than 6,700 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Since the 1967 occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, more than 800,000 Palestinians have been jailed. Dozens of Palestinians are arrested daily, making mass imprisonment a fact of life for Palestinians under occupation.
Palestinians under Israeli military occupation are tried in military courts. In almost every case, these courts rubber-stamp charges brought by the Israeli authorities.
Palestinians face torture on a routine basis in an attempt to extract confessions and other information from detainees under interrogation. This evidence produced under torture is regularly introduced and accepted in Israeli military courts.
Convictions in Israeli military courts fall far short of the international standards for fair trials.
Zayed’s case also highlights the right to escape unjust incarceration.
The right of prisoners of war to escape is enshrined in the Geneva Conventions. Palestinians in Israeli jails have long demanded to be recognized as prisoners of war.
Bulgaria and Israel
The current Bulgarian government is composed largely of right-wing parties that are strongly supportive of Israel.
In 2014, the then foreign ministers of Bulgaria and Israel, Kristian Vigenin and Avigdor Lieberman, met. Vigenin stated that “our friendship lies on deep historic roots, which we are now further developing for the people of our nations.”
At the same meeting, a “new phase” of increased security coordination between these countries was announced.
Such security coordination is now coming at a potentially high cost to Palestinians in Europe.
Zayed’s wife said her husband has already suffered enough.
“Is it not enough that Omar was forced to leave his homeland and his family and live in exile?” she said. “Now he is once again facing prosecution. This injustice must end.”
Charlotte Kates is the international coordinator of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, which is campaigning against Zayed’s extradition, and a member of the organizing collective of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel. She also coordinates the international committee of the National Lawyers Guild.
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