Ramallah repression

"The Palestinian Authority imprisoned journalist Yousef al-Shayab Wednesday because of something he wrote, and because he insists on protecting his sources, say his colleagues. Al-Shayab hit back by announcing in court he would go on hunger strike.   Based on anonymous sources, al-Shayab’s January article alleged that the PA diplomatic mission to France was involved in spying on Muslim student groups for the benefit of “Palestinian and foreign security.” It also alleged that PA Foreign Minister Riad Malki helped cover up the scandal.  Al-Shayeb was first imprisoned in January, soon after the article was published in Jordanian newspaper Al-Ghad. He was interrogated for eight hours, during which time they demanded to know his sources, said al-Shayeb’s colleague Fadi Arouri, a journalist who works for the Xinhua news agency." (thanks Asa)