Two Palestinian officials allege the US CIA spied on them for Abbas

Ramallah is in upheaval over allegations by two high Palestinian opposition leaders that the CIA spied on their private electronic communications on behalf of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. They are demanding that the attorney general launch an investigation into their allegations and prosecute the culprits. The officials are Tawfiq Tirawi, who was until 2008 head of the Palestinian security apparatus, and Jawad Obeidat, Chairman of the Palestinian bar association. They claim that a 37-page document, which has just begun making the rounds on Palestinian social media, reveals that the CIA set up a secret monitoring center in Ramallah, on behalf of Abbas. This document was penned by an unnamed individual, who identified himself as a Palestinian security service agent employed at the secret surveillance center.
Tirawi and Obeidat say the center was set up to keep track of Palestinians posing a security threat. But instead, they found in the document transcripts of their own private conversations and evidence of of political espionage  recorded in thousands of phone calls by judges, security officials and politicians, some of them fans of Mahmoud Abbas and others, rivals.  DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources say that this scandal reveals how deeply the 82-year old PA chairman’s grip on power in Ramallah depended on the US spy agency. The disclosure, coming as it has just after Abbas cut off his ties with Washington and declared war on Donald Trump’s Jerusalem policy and peace effort, will have the effect of a time bomb on his already waning popularity in the Palestinian community.

 

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10 thoughts on “Two Palestinian officials allege the US CIA spied on them for Abbas

  • Feb 6, 2018 @ 18:33 at 18:33
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    Evil always loses in the end. Goodbye Mahmoud Abbas, you vile murderous POS.

  • Feb 6, 2018 @ 18:36 at 18:36
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    When the BIG cat is away…does the CIA…really watch…which mice and rats took the cheese…and then inform the BIG cat. Maybe… but only when he is hungry…and has no cheese for himself to eat. Then hungry cats go to the United Nations or to the International Court at the Hague….blaming the world…for hunger and cold. Very “humane” Animal rights and freedoms. No great concern for humans though… laws of nature control animal populations by laws of survival. Where does all the surplus cheese come from???

  • Feb 6, 2018 @ 18:55 at 18:55
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    Nothing was out of bounds with the anti-Israel Obama. It may or may not be accurate and/or true but with that administration best known as pro Muslim and anti Israel bias absolutely nothing would surprise me. Too bad we will probably never know for sure. Strong man dictator were all good so long as they would work against Israel.

    • Feb 7, 2018 @ 20:53 at 20:53
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      Doubtlessly, Obama was villainous. But if any of this happened before early 2009, GW Bush was involved. Bushes brought us Clintons and Obamas. No more.

  • Feb 6, 2018 @ 21:34 at 21:34
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    Life for the Palestinians would be so much easier if/when they stop terrorism and accept Israel as a Jewish country.

    It’s so simple.

    • Feb 7, 2018 @ 8:36 at 8:36
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      This is England, not Britain. Accept it. It’s so simple. We English want to live separate to you Brutes.

  • Feb 7, 2018 @ 0:38 at 0:38
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    The Article doesn’t give a time line for this, but I would assume that it was during Obama’s tenure. Does not surprise me that His Holiness Obama would assist the arch terrorist Abbas to spy on other arch terrorists.

  • Feb 7, 2018 @ 1:15 at 1:15
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    Trump kicked Obama and Abbas spy networks to the curb.

  • Feb 7, 2018 @ 4:07 at 4:07
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    I wouldn’t believe a single word that comes from a palestinian

  • Feb 7, 2018 @ 9:55 at 9:55
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    Possible intentional leak by Trump administration. Abbas has gone rogue and useless. Time to bring Muhammad Dahlan from the exile.

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