Palestinian authorities arrested an employee of chief negotiator Saeb Erekat on accusations of "spying for Israel," senior officials in Erekat's office and the Palestine Liberation Organization secretary general's bureau said on Saturday.
An official has revealed that the man employed in the negotiations department of the PLO was arrested around two weeks ago. Furthermore, he revealed that the man was an administrative employee without access to political files but was discovered to have made collaborations with Israel.
According to reports in the Palestinian press via Haaretz, the suspect has worked for the administration for the past 20 years since it was headed by current Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
The publication has also recalled the headlines back in 2011 where leaks of information and documents from the negotiations office were revealed on the Qatari news network al-Jazeera. It was suspected that two administration officials gave al-Jazeera confidential documents describing discussions between Israeli officials and the Palestinian authority, and even includes minutes of the meeting. The Palestinian Authority revealed that the leakage was made by Qatar to gain favour with Israel.
Now reportedly, the Palestinian security forces are in the process of evaluating any potential damage caused by the suspect. A senior official in the negotiations administration also said that the suspect had been under surveillance for several months. As there were enough evidences gathered it has then led to his arrest and interrogation.
Mr Erekat, a close ally of President Mahmoud Abbas, has been the top negotiator in peace efforts with Israel. Erekat has purportedly emphasized that the official suspected of espionage was neither a senior official nor one of his close advisers.
While the suspect has allegedly admitted to his crime of spying, a criminal investigation is still being done. Under Palestinian law, those accused of espionage risk receiving capital punishment.
