Senior Palestinian official denied entry into Egypt

Egypt refused to allow senior PA official Jibril Rajoub, who was on his way to a counterterrorism conference in Cairo, to enter the country.

On Monday, Egypt refused to admit Jibril Rajoub, a senior Palestinian official, into their country, saying that the decision was made by the Egyptian intelligence agencies.

Egyptian authorities gave no detailed reason for their denial of Rajoub’s entry request.

Rajoub, a senior member of the Palestinian Authority (PA) headed by  Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah party, was on his way to Cairo to attend a conference on counterterrorism when he was notified at passport control that he could not enter Egypt.

Egypt’s refusal to admit Rajoub prompted Palestinian Justice Minister Ali Abu Diak, who was also planning to attend the conference, to withdraw in protest.

Rajoub said he was “surprised by the Egyptian security decision to ban me from entering Egypt,” AFP reported.

Rajoub, who served time in Israeli prisons for acts of terrorism, often uses his position as chairman of the Palestinian Football Association and the Palestine Olympic Committee to censure Israel at international sports forums.

The relationship between the PA and Egypt has deteriorated in recent months. Abbas has refused to succumb to pressure from the Arab Quartet – Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia) – to reconcile with Mohammed Dahlan, a contender to succeed the PA chairman and who is favored by Egypt, as well as others who were dismissed from the Fatah movement.

By: World Israel News Staff