The Palestinian Authority released Sunday a businessman arrested for attending last week’s “Peace to Prosperity” economic workshop in Bahrain, which the authority boycotted.
Maariv newspaper revealed that the release was in response to a stern warning issued by the US embassy.
Salah Abu Mayala had been taken in for questioning by PA intelligence late Friday. The PA also attempted to arrest other Palestinian participants in the conference including Ashraf Jabari, a businessman close to US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.
The authority accuses the businessmen who took part in the workshop of financial and taxation breaches, and claims that some are wanted by the judiciary. Some officials close to PA President Mahmoud Abbas had warned that any Palestinian who participates in the Manama workshop would be considered an Israeli-US traitor.
The authority has been refusing to deal with Donald Trump’s administration since Dec. 2017 when the US president recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
US Mideast envoy Jason Greenblatt said Sunday the White House was "pleased" with Abu Mayala's release. He said on Twitter that the White House looked forward to further discussions with those who attended the workshop and "anyone else who wants a better future for the Palestinians."
Yet the authority made no official statement on the arrest or release of Abu Mayala, possibly because of the legal justifications of arresting people who participated in an economic conference and the embarrassment this could cause to ties with countries taking part in the workshop.
