The family of Nizar Banat, who died in the custody of Palestinian security forces last June, has accused the Palestinian Authority (PA) of trying to cover up his assassination, the Middle East Monitor reported.
In a statement released on Tuesday evening, Banat’s family said that the PA Preventive Security Apparatus’s actions prove the extent of their criminal policies, which have reached the level of committing organized crime, employing false witnesses and corrupt lawyers.
Nizar Banat was a staunch critic of the policies of the Palestinian president and the umbrella Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), and was arrested several times by security forces. https://t.co/Zhl8GJ6tyt
— Samidoun Network (@SamidounPP) March 29, 2022
The statement came after a court hearing held on March 24, where a lawyer representing the Preventive Security Apparatus invited forensic pathologist Saber Al-Aloul, who claimed in his testimony that Nizar had died of heart disease.
However, the Banat family explained, in the statement, that the official forensic report which was issued after a full examination of the body concluded that the cause of death was the multiple blows to the body.
“The evidence provided by the Military Prosecution is the official forensic report, and it can only be refuted by evidence higher than or equivalent to it, and this is what can never be achieved,” the statement said, pointing out that the family has obtained Nizar’s medical record from Al-Ahly Hospital and Alia Hospital.
In Hebron ahead of the elections:
"The streets are adorned with pictures + sayings
of the martyr Nizar Banat, who was assassinated [almost 1 year ago] after taken into custody by Palestinian Security officers"… https://t.co/fKmqk7eMAG— Marian Houk (@Marianhouk) March 27, 2022
The medical record stated that Nizar did not suffer from any disease and that the reports had been published previously, and will be republished to the local community and the media.
Political activist Nizar Banat died after he was beaten by PA security officers at his uncle’s house in Hebron (Al-Khalil) on June 24 last year.
(MEMO, PC, Social Media)
