Israel Matzav

The PLO summons the Son of Hamas

The legal maneuvering is part of a lawsuit filed against the PLO in U.S. District Court in New York by victims and family members of seven terrorist attacks. The lawsuit claims that the PLO was complicit in the attacks, and thus liable for damages. The PLO said in its court filings that it served Yousef in Pennsylvania because it couldn't find him elsewhere.

But can a civil lawsuit force someone to turn over details of how they worked with an intelligence organization to prevent terrorist attacks?

"There's no clear-cut answer in the law," said Witold Walczak, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Pennsylvania.

Walczak said that Yousef can argue that he has a type of journalist's privilege not to reveal sources, but the fact that his book is autobiographical may complicate that argument.

Yousef's book agent said he wasn't available to speak about the issue.

Tom Copeland, a professor at Geneva College in Beaver Falls who studies terrorism and national security policy, read Yousef's book last year and helped arrange several speaking engagements for him last month, including the church appearance where the PLO served the subpoena.

From a legal standpoint, Copeland said, it's clear that the PLO would be at a disadvantage if it couldn't question Yousef, since information in his book is being used against the organization.

There's little question Yousef has plenty of information.

"Yes, while working for Israeli intelligence, I posed as a terrorist," Yousef wrote on his blog last year. "Yes, I carried a gun. Yes, I was in terrorist meetings with Yasser Arafat, my father and other Hamas leaders. It was part of my job."

The PLO said in a court filing that it is seeking documents from Yousef because they may show that he's biased against the PLO.

Labels: Fatah, Hamas, Mosab Hassan Yousef, Palestinian terrorism, PLO

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:24 AM