Israeli court postpones ruling on activist’s release

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) - An Israeli court on Monday postponed by two days a decision on whether to approve the conditional release of resistance icon Raed Salah, the jailed leader of the Islamic Movement in Israel.

“The court justified the delay by saying it was still awaiting a report from Israeli prison authorities about the electronic wristband Salah would have to wear in the event that he is conditionally freed,” Khaled Zbarqa, Salah’s lawyer, told Anadolu Agency.

“We believe, however, that the Israeli authorities are intentionally dragging their feet on the issue of his release,” he added.

Last summer, police arrested Salah in his hometown of Umm al-Fahm -- located in northern Israel -- before convicting him of “inciting violence” and placing him in solitary confinement.

In February, an Israeli court in the southern city of Beersheba slapped the 59-year-old resistance icon with an additional six months in isolation.

Israel outlawed Salah’s Islamic Movement in 2015 for allegedly engaging in “anti-Israel activities”.