Sari Nusseibeh Released from Jail, Was Held Three Months for Spying

The Israeli military authorities on Sunday released Dr. Sari Nusseibeh, a Palestinian activist held for three months in administrative detention.

Nusseibeh, accused of spying for Iraq during the Persian Gulf war, was ordered incarcerated for six months.

But the High Court of Justice, citing the paucity of, evidence against him, directed that his term be reduced by half.

Nusseibeh, who holds a Ph.D. from Oxford University, is a professor of philosophy at Bir Zeit University in the West Bank, which has been closed by military authorities since the Palestinian uprising began more than three years ago.

Israeli authorities claim the university is a source of agitation for the intifada.

The 42-year-old academician arrived Sunday at his mother’s home in East Jerusalem looking well, but appeared to have lost weight.

He is the son of the late Anwar Nusseibeh, a former defense minister of Jordan who died in the 1980s.

While his father was a close adviser to King Hussein of Jordan, the younger Nusseibeh is regarded by the Likud government as a supporter of Al Fatah, the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

The Israeli security authorities alleged the university professor was informing the Iraqis where their Scud missiles fired at Israel were landing.

They said they did not press formal charges against him “for security reasons.”

Nusseibeh denied the accusations.

His home at Abu Dis village, just outside of Jerusalem, was under constant curfew, which would have made any attempt at spying impossible, he said.

He intends to leave shortly for a sabbatical at Oxford.