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Dr. Omar Said. Criticism against Shin Bet
Photo: Hagai Aharon

'Arab spy' released from jail

Upon leaving prison, Dr. Omar Said tells Ynet his arrest was 'political'

Dr. Omar Said, who was convicted of providing services to an unauthorized organization and sentenced to seven months in jail, was released from the Gilboa Prison on Monday morning after completing his sentence.

 

Said, who was arrested in April on suspicion of being involved in a security-related affair, told Ynet upon leaving the prison, "My release proves what I have been claiming from the very beginning, that this was a political arrest. When it comes to Arabs, they're always quick to pull the trigger."

 

Said, a resident of the Galilee town of Kafr Kanna, said he had mixed feelings. "They kept on questioning me about Amir Makhoul, as if we were members of Hezbollah and I was the one who recruited him. They quickly realized that they had gone too far."


Celebrating release in Kafr Kanna (Photo: Panet website)

 

He said there was a difference between investigations against Jews and Arabs. "When it comes to suspicions against Jews, like Haim Pearlman, although the Shin Bet know for sure that he murdered Arabs, they let him use the right to remain silent and meet a lawyer. I was not allowed to remain silent or meet with a lawyer.

 

"The only time I met Amir and spoke to him, he told me how they pressured him until he nearly collapsed and confessed. I am the first person to believe him and can't wait for him to be releases soon."

 

Attorney Hussein Abu Hussein, Said's lawyer, said he knew "it was a joke" immediately after the arrest. According to the lawyer, Said was scheduled to appear before the parole committee on August 11, but the State Prosecutor's Office said it had yet to receive the Shin Bet's opinion.

 

Another discussion was held last Tuesday, and the committee decided to deduct one-third from his sentence. According to the lawyer, the Shin Bet and State Prosecutor's Office expressed their objection to the early release.

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 09.13.10, 12:12
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