Ashraf Ghanem, one of the Palestinians participants in last week’s “Peace to Prosperity” economic workshop in Bahrain, accused the Palestinian Authority (PA) of persecuting him, saying he was forced to flee the West Bank to Israel.
On Friday night, a number of PA intelligence officers raided Ghanem’s home in an attempt to arrest him for participating in the workshop, he told Israeli media. They confiscated all his identification papers, passport and credit cards.
Ghanem was one of the businessmen that took part in a conference organized by the US in Bahrain to discuss the economic aspect of the yet undisclosed US Middle East plan, challenging the authority's decision to boycott.
He said he was threatened before participating and that he is now being persecuted by the authorities along with his colleagues.
In an interview with Israeli television, Ghanem attacked the PA, describing them as “terrorists who do not want peace.”
Ghanem claimed that he had received calls from Palestinian security officers who asked him to surrender in order to discuss his participation in the Bahrain Workshop.
He claimed he managed to escape from his home, adding that he “can’t move around because the Palestinian security forces took all my documents. I don’t have any money because they also took my credit cards. They even confiscated the security cameras from my home and searched the homes of my brothers.”
Ghanem said he does not intend to hand himself over to the authorities and accused Fatah of threatening to kill him.
Another businessman, Ashraf Jabari, who is a close associate to US Ambassador David Friedman and who participated in the conference, said that he too was threatened by the PA and that he was housing other participants in the workshop to protect them.
Another figure, Salah Abu Mayala was released Sunday by the authorities who arrested him for two days for attending the workshop.
Reports revealed that the release was in response to a stern warning by the US embassy.
US Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt said Sunday the White House was "pleased" with Abu Mayala's release. He said on Twitter that the White House looked forward to further discussions with those who attended the workshop and "anyone else who wants a better future for the Palestinians."
The PA has made no official statement on the arrest or release of any of the participants.
It accuses the businessmen who took part in the workshop of financial and taxation breaches and claims that some are wanted by the judiciary. Some officials close to PA President Mahmoud Abbas had warned that any Palestinian who participates in the workshop would be considered an Israeli-US traitor.
The PA has been refusing to deal with Donald Trump’s administration since December 2017 when the US president recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
