More on Mohamed Abu Muailek

To remind you:

Mohamed Abu Muailek is a 25-year-old Palestinian, believes that Palestinians should seek co-existence with Israel. Mohamed is in jail and facing potential execution by Hamas. Once a militant, he is now a strong advocate of peaceful coexistence.

Before you read the update: please don't hesitate to join this Facebook group. Now to the news:

Subject: update from Yasser (Mohamed's brother):

The latest small victory Mohammed's lawyer managed to gain was the proof that he didn't transmit any coordinations that could have helped Israel locate, and kill, members of Hamas during the war in Gaza (early 2009). A computer expert who testified at his court hearing last month confirmed that the Google-Earth software the Hamas-prosecutor claims Mohammed used to transmit the coordinations from was installed AFTER the war (in March 2009), which means Mohammed had no means of transmitting any coordinations to anyone, let alone Israel. According to his lawyer, Mohammed's case is now entering its final stages, and is about three hearings away from the sentence day. The only piece of evidence left to discuss is his chat log with an Israeli guy he met online while working for a computer maintenance platform on the internet. Hamas argues that this contact wasn't just for friendship, and that this guy from Israel is actually a spymaster who recruited Mohammed in Gaza. Now I've read the chat logs, and there's absolutely no indication whatsoever that Mohammed passed valuable information to this guy (Nickname Dan). They show normal chats between two young people on different sides of the conflict and are learning to understand each other's culture and situation. A translation into Arabic of these logs has been made and we're now waiting for the court to admit them as evidence.

Mohammed's current situation is as critical as it can get. Though the news of how his hearings are proceeding sound positive and cheering, I'm very concerned about his safety AFTER the trial, for he received death threats "even if he is found innocent" from members of Hamas' influential Internal Security. It seems some people have a personal grudge against him and I don't want him to be released and then gunned down in some act of false street-justice, because Hamas' records show they don't investigate these incidents.

This is why I'm calling upon you all to campaign not only for Mohammed's release, but his expedient extraction from the Gaza Strip and right to asylum in the UK as a means to protect his life, and to be declared by the British Government as a "prisoner of conscience" and be granted refuge there. He will always be at risk so long as he remains in Gaza, and so long as Hamas reigns there unchecked. I hope that you would reach out to those women and men in high places to ask them aid Mohammed at the most critical point of his young life. If my calculations proved to be true, he might be released shortly before his 26th birthday on December 9th.
Please continue to raise awareness of Mohamed's situation as far and wide as you can, with as many leaders and friends as possible, and please help me send him this birthday gift, which would allow him to celebrate further birthdays in freedom and safety.

Thank you for all your efforts. Regards, Yasser Abu Muailek

And don't forget to join the group, please.