Israeli security arrests Gaza-based UN official en route to Jerusalem
July 17, 2017 6:20 P.M. (Updated: July 17, 2017 8:55 P.M.)
▻http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?ID=778148
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli forces have detained a United Nations official based in the besieged Gaza Strip, with neither the UN nor Israeli authorities commenting publicly on the case five days after the arrest.
According to local NGO the Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, Hamdan Muhammad Hassan Timraz, the assistant regional director for UN Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) in the Gaza Strip, was detained on July 12 at Israel’s Erez crossing, the only crossing Palestinians in Gaza can use to travel to Israel or the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.
Timraz, 61, had obtained a permit to travel to Jerusalem to meet with the general manager of UNDSS’ Jerusalem office, according to Al-Mezan’s statement, which highlighted that Timraz regularly traveled outside of Gaza for work.
Timraz’s wife Niemeh Salih Timraz, 54, told the NGO that the family lost contact with him after he arrived at Erez crossing. It wasn’t until Thursday that Israeli security services telephoned Timraz’s 24-year-old son Abd al-Hadi and notified him that his father was under arrest.
A spokesperson for Israel’s security service, the Shin Bet, could not immediately be reached for comment, however, an Israeli security source confirmed the arrest to an Israeli journalist, who said the news was under gag order in Israel.
