GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Just two days after President Mahmoud Abbas decided Dec. 12 to strip five members of parliament in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), including dismissed Fatah leader and parliamentarian Mohammed Dahlan, from their parliamentary immunity in preparation for their prosecution on charges of misappropriation of funds and trade of weapons, the Palestinian Corruption Crimes Court issued a judgment in absentia against Dahlan on charges of embezzlement and sentenced him to three years in prison and a $16 million fine.
The court’s decision came as no surprise to many in the Palestinian street, in light of the exacerbating struggle between Abbas and his rival Dahlan. The dispute surfaced after the death of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat in 2004, when Dahlan — a high-level Fatah official back then — and Abbas exchanged accusations of assassination, collaboration and corruption.