A Palestinian court on Monday sentenced a Palestinian-American man to life for selling a Jerusalem building to Jews, a judicial source said in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
Issam Akel, accused of involvement in the sale to Jewish buyers of a building in occupied and annexed East Jerusalem, was arrested in October by the Palestinian Authority based in Ramallah. Israeli and American officials have since called for his release.
Guilty of selling land to a "foreign country". The official Palestinian agency WAFA reported the verdict but identified the accused as an AI only. He was convicted of selling Palestinian land to a "foreign country," according to the agency. But a judicial source confirmed that the convict was Issam Akel and that he could appeal the decision. Such sales are prohibited by the Palestinian Authority because they allow, according to her, to increase the colonization of the Palestinian neighborhoods of the Holy City.
"We have been informed that a US citizen has been convicted by a Palestinian court," said a US official who requested anonymity. "When a US citizen is incarcerated abroad, the US government strives to provide all the appropriate consular assistance."
The United States demands his release. After the arrest of Issam Akel, Israeli police twice arrested Palestinian governor of Jerusalem Adnan Gheith as part of the investigation. In November, the US ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, said on Twitter that Issam Akel's detention was "contrary to American values and opposed to those of all those who defend the cause of peaceful coexistence." We demand his release. immediate ".
East Jerusalem, a claimed territory
Israel conquered the eastern part of Jerusalem in 1967, declaring in 1980 the entire city as its "eternal" and "indivisible" capital. This annexation is not recognized by the international community, which considers East Jerusalem as an occupied territory. Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of the state they aspire to. All activities of the Palestinian Authority in Jerusalem are considered illegal by Israel.