Last update - 00:00 08/08/2007
Incitement charges drafted against Islamic Movement head
The State Prosecution has drafted an indictment against the head of the northern branch of Israel's Islamic Movement on charges of incitement and sedition.
The indictment comes at the culmination of a six-month investigation into the activities of Sheikh Ra'ad Salah after he made comments against Israel's government, security forces and police in February.
During a demonstration some six months ago against Israel's aim to renovate a bridge situated in close proximity to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Salah called for an "intifada" to protect the holy site.
In a fiery speech given in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Wadi Joz, Salah accused Israel of attempting to rebuild the Jewish Temple on the Temple mount while drenched in Arab blood.
The existence of the draft indictment was revealed Wednesday during a hearing on the terms of Salah's release from custody. The Jerusalem police had requested an extension of the limiting terms on which his release was originally conditioned.
Salah will face charges of incitement to violence, incitement to racism and sedition.
The Islamic Movement responded to the revelation on Wednesday, saying it had never been informed of the existence of an indictment. "As always, the attorney general chooses to communicate with us through the media. This indictment, as in previous cases, will not prevent us from standing up for our commitment to the Al-Aqsa Mosque," the group's spokesman said.
The spokesman refused to discuss Salah's comments, saying "what we have to say we will express in court."