Suspects accused of killing Nizar Banat released: Judicial sources
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Ahead of Nizar Banat's death anniversary, the Palestinian authority orders the release of the suspects accused of assassinating the activist.
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Palestinian martyr Nizar Banat (Archive)
Palestinian judicial sources said Wednesday that the Palestinian Authority released the suspects accused of killing political activist Nizar Banat on bail, requiring them to attend court sessions.
A letter from the Military Prosecutor addressed to the director of the Military Intelligence requested that the detainees in connection with the case be granted leave until next July 2.
The Military Prosecutor justified his request by the spread of the Corononavirus in the prison in which the suspects were staying, to which banat's family replied, "If the Palestinian Authority is afraid of the spread of corona, why not release detainees it has on other cases."
"The PA, ordered by President Mahmoud Abbas, has released the 14 suspects on condition that they attend the court hearings on time," a security source told Quds Press.
This comes amid preparations by Banat's family and rights groups to mark the first anniversary of his murder with a massive ceremony.
The Palestinian activist was martyred shortly after his arrest by the Palestinian security services. His family said that he was assassinated, especially after a medical report confirmed that Banat had been brutally beaten.
شبكة قدس تنشر تسجيل كاميرات المراقبة لعملية اعتقال واغتيال الشهيد #نزار_بنات على أيدي عملاء "التنسيق الأمني" في مدينة #الخليل pic.twitter.com/XgenhpU2MP
— ثائر الدر 🇱🇧 (@thaeraldorr) June 27, 2021
A doctor accredited by human rights organizations who reviewed the autopsy pointed out that Banat's death was not natural and said he was beaten, pointing out that the martyr's death happened less than an hour after his arrest.
Banat's family slammed the release of the suspects as manipulation and unfairness. His wife told AFP that their release is a clear injustice and an affirmation that Nizar's assassination was a political decision, stressing that Nizar's killers cannot be the judge.
Last year, the Lawyers for Justice group accused the Palestinian Authority of disrupting the trial procedures of the murderers of Banat and trying to influence the witnesses who are being prosecuted and arrested.
Nizar Banat's brother calls for an end to the "authority's bloody practices"
Ghassan Banat, brother of the martyr Nizar Banat, said that the release of those accused of killing Nizar proves that “the crime of his assassination is nothing but a full-fledged political assassination."
He added, "The decision of the family and the National Commission to withdraw from the court was a correct and sound decision, having witnessed the extent of manipulation and the lack of integrity and transparency in its procedures.”
Banat affirmed that PA President Mahmoud Abbas, whom he called a traitor to his religion and his country, will bear the consequences of this decision and its impact on civil peace…
Ghassan Banat demanded that "the judges withdraw from this bloody play so that they are not complicit in Nizar's blood.”
He also called on "the international community to stop funding the security system of Abbas' authority, which proves daily that it uses these funds against the Palestinians to torture, kill, and abuse them" as he put it.
