Jerusalem, April 6, 1998

67 Palestinians Suspected of Cooperating With Israel Have Been Murdered
(Communicated by the Government Press Office)

The Agreement

Under the terms of the Oslo Accords, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is
obligated to protect Palestinians suspected of cooperating with Israel and
to refrain from harassing them.

The Interim Agreement (Oslo 2) of September 28, 1995 (Article XVI, para.
2) states, "Palestinians who have maintained contact with the Israeli
authorities will not be subjected to acts of harassment, violence,
retribution or prosecution. Appropriate ongoing measures will be taken, in
coordination with Israel, in order to ensure their protection." The
Article containing this obligation is entitled "Confidence Building
Measures", and its preamble states that both sides will carry it out "to
establish a solid basis of mutual trust and good faith."

A similar undertaking was previously made by the Palestinians in the May
4, 1994 Gaza- Jericho Agreement (Article XX, para. 4), which established
the PA.

The Violations

Since the PA's establishment four years ago, more than 160 Palestinians
suspected of cooperating with Israel have been wounded or killed. Rather
than protect such people, the PA and its security services have targeted
and intimidated them in violation of the accords.

Since May 18, 1994, when the PA assumed control over Gaza and Jericho, a
total of 67 Palestinians suspected of cooperating with Israel have been
murdered (including nine suspects being held in Palestinian prisons) and
96 others injured. Most of those killed and injured were residents of
Judea and Samaria.

The Palestinian security services expend considerable efforts to monitor
and interrogate Palestinians suspected of cooperating with Israel.
Suspects have been kidnapped by the PA security services and forcibly
detained in Palestinian prisons, where they have been questioned about
their alleged ties to Israel.

The most recent assault on a Palestinian suspected of cooperating with
Israel took place on March 29, 1998, when the body of Ribhi Musfi, aged
48, was found on the outskirts of Palestinian-controlled Jericho. Evidence
in the possession of the Israel police indicates that Musfi had been
called in to an interrogation by the Palestinian security forces in
Ramallah. Since that time, and until his body was discovered, there had
been no trace of his whereabouts.



  =====================================================================
        Information Division, Israel Foreign Ministry - Jerusalem
              Mail all Queries to   ask@israel-info.gov.il
                    URL: http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il
                         gopher://israel-info.gov.il
  =====================================================================