Brazil has barred the Palestinian activist Muslim Abu Omar from entering its territory and deported him along with his family, based on a recommendation from the United States, which alleged that he is a member of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and planned to stay in Brazil to serve as a spokesperson for the movement.
Palestinian activist Muslim Abu Omar said that Brazilian authorities detained him upon his arrival at São Paulo airport last Sunday and informed him that he was banned from entering the country without providing reasons.
According to Brazilian and international press, the judge handling his case hesitated to deport him based on a police request but eventually agreed to do so.
Reuters reported that the judge based her decision to approve the deportation on Abu Omar’s social media posts about his meeting in Doha with the head of Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh.
Abu Omar, who has resided in Malaysia for 20 years, confirmed that Brazilian police were waiting for him at the airplane gate upon his arrival at São Paulo airport. After a brief interrogation, they informed him that he was banned from entering the country. However, his deportation was postponed after he contacted a local lawyer who requested to halt the deportation until the reasons were reviewed.
He added that the file presented by the police to the court was based on Israeli media reports and that the court did not give the defense lawyer sufficient opportunity to respond to the police report. The court decided to deport him after he and his family spent about 48 hours in a detention center inside the airport.
Muslim Abu Omar denied to the Brazilian police that he was a member of Hamas and asserted that his work is purely academic and research-oriented, particularly as he heads an institute for Asian and Middle Eastern studies.
In his conversation, he did not rule out that his detention and deportation were politically motivated, linked to U.S. and Israeli influence in Brazil. He said the lawyer informed him that Brazilian law does not prohibit any Palestinian factions nor criminalize membership in them.
Muslim Abu Omar was traveling to Brazil to visit his brother, having previously visited in early January of the previous year.
source: lualuatv
