Palestinians turn against the leadership
Could Nizar Banat's death be a turning point in Palestinian politics?
There is continuing anger in the West Bank over the death in custody of a vociferous critic of the Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas. Nizar Banat, an anti-corruption campaigner, was picked up in a violent night-time raid at his home in Hebron. The Palestinian Authority has launched an investigation into the circumstances of Banat's death and has promised action against anyone responsible. But that's done little to placate protesters who allege that the Palestinian security forces use extra-judicial force against anyone who questions or criticises the leadership. They say this behaviour is emblematic of a wider break down of law and order and a thriving culture of corruption in the West Bank, where elections were last held over 15 years ago. So why is corruption such a problem and where is it happening? Is there scope for reforms with the current leadership in charge? And how dependent is any change on the overall relationship with Israel and rival administration in Gaza, run by Hamas? Ritula Shah is joined by a panel of Palestinian commentators.
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Dana El Kurd - Palestinian academic; author of 'Polarized and Demobilized: Legacies of Authoritarianism in Palestine'
Nour Odeh - Palestinian politician and former journalist
Mariam Barghouti - Palestinian writer based in Ramallah, in the West Bank
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- Fri 2 Jul 2021 09:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
- Fri 2 Jul 2021 23:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
- Sat 3 Jul 2021 03:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
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The Real Story
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