Fatah official detained after criticising Palestinian security services

An official from the Palestinian Fatah movement was reportedly detained on Thursday in the occupied West Bank after slamming Palestinian security services, local media reported.

Social media users posted a picture of the arrest warrant issued against Fatah spokesperson Munir Al-Jaghoub.

It says Al-Jaghoub's arrest came on charges of "defamation directed at the supreme commander, the courts, agencies, or security forces, in a way that weakens the morale of the military regime, or obedience to superiors".

⭕قرار توقيف القيادي في حركة فتح منير الجاغوب pic.twitter.com/fKPIxTg9ED

— كبسولة (@KapsolaNews) January 19, 2023

He was detained in Ramallah after alleged voice recordings of him were leaked where he lashed out at PA security officials, reportedly angered by the arrest of his brother Moatasam.

No further information was made available.

Social media pointed out that Al-Jaghoub had accused critics of the Palestinian Authority (PA) of being "spies and traitors" in the past.

منير الجاغوب : كنا نحكي عن اللي بنتقدونا جواسيس وعملاء .. الخ، بس لما الواحد يجرب وتصير القصة معاه بصير يحسب حسابات ثانية .

- هسا عرفت يا منير انو الناس اللي بتنتقد لانها مظلومة ولانها شايفة الفساد اللي بصير مش لانهم جواسيس وعملاء ؟!! pic.twitter.com/4xYdbP8ZX7

— الحج مش هيك (@MshHyk2) January 18, 2023

"Munir Al-Jaghoub had no problem arresting the youth of Al-Akhdar and other places. He doesn't have a problem when injustice is done to others, he just has a problem when it’s done to him or a relative of his," said one Twitter user.

السلطة تعتقل الناطق باسم فتح منير الجاغوب على خلفية تسجيلات صوتية له، تحتوي على توبيخ وتهجم على قيادات في الأجهزة الأمنية.

المدعو منير الجاغوب لم تكن لديه أي مشكلة في اعتقال شباب الأخضر وغيرهم؛ هو لا يرفض وقوع الظلم على غيره فقط لا يريد أن يمسه أو يمس أحد المقربين منه.

— yaseenizeddeen (@yaseenizeddeen) January 19, 2023

The PA governs parts of the West Bank, engaging in security coordination with Israel, and is accused of suppressing internal dissent, leading to criticism from much of the Palestinian population.

In late April 2022, PA President Mahmoud Abbas ordered a series of arrests in Hebron and Jenin amid continued Israeli raids across refugee camps in the area.

Last month, PA security forces detained scores of civilians across the West Bank in a campaign of "politically motivated" arrests during the 35th anniversary of the establishment of Hamas.

Palestinian rights groups condemned the Fatah-led PA's detentions as illegal, saying that authorities targeted the alleged Hamas activists due to their political affiliations.

The two parties fought a brief but bloody conflict in 2007, leading to Hamas in control of Gaza and Fatah in charge of the West Bank.