Palestinians 'humiliated', cancel meeting with Israelis

Three senior officials of coordiation administrations in Hebron area say request for them to go through security checks at Tarkumiah offensive
Ali Waked

Senior officials from the Palestinian coordination mechanisms in the Hebron area refused to arrive to a meeting with their Israeli counterparts grounds that they had been humiliated.

On their way to Israel, the three had been asked to undergo a security check at the Tarkumiah crossing in the West Bank.

The Palestinian team – comprised of the head of the Civilian Coordination Administration in Hebron, the head of the Agricultural Administration in Hebron and the head of the Agricultural Administration in Qalqilya – was supposed to arrive in Israel to discuss the transfer of trucks bearing peaches and plums into Hebron.

However, once the team was requested to undergo a security check, they decided to return to Palestinian-operated territory, claiming that the Israelis had intended to humiliate them.

The Palestinian representatives said the meeting had not occurred after the three refused to undergo the full security checks required at every checkpoint into Israel from the West Bank.

It was decided to hold the meeting somewhere where "such checks of the Palestinians could be prevented."

Israeli security sources said that the Palestinian coordination representatives knew they would need to undergo a security check, such that they had other motivations for canceling the meeting.

The checks at the Tarkumiah checkpoint contains metal detectors and body check if necessary, in order to prevent the transmission of dangerous items on the person of individuals crossing into Israel.

Hanan Greenberg contributed to this report