The body of 45-year-old Banat was laid in the streets of Hebron after his funeral at the mosque where he lived. A crowd estimated at 15,000 by CNN followed the body, waving Palestinian flags, declaring him a martyr.
The people chanted, “Abu Mazen is a traitor” – referring to Abbas by the common Arabic kunya “Abu” meaning “father” – and “the people say, ‘Down with authority!'”
Many of the mourners also waved the green flag of Hamas, the Islamist group running Gaza and one of Abbas’s main political rivals.
There have also been anti-PA protests in Ramallah outside the Al Aqsa Mosque and in the Old City of Jerusalem.
Banat was a well-known and outspoken critic of Abbas and the PA, using social media to condemn the PA leaders for their alleged corruption and incompetence.
One of his last posts on Facebook slammed the PA over his failed swap deal with Israel for 1 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine for the coronavirus.
He was arrested in the early hours of Thursday in an operation by about 20 armed officers, his family told CNN, during which he was brutally beaten up, his family said.
A preliminary autopsy report released by the independent Human Rights Commission based in Ramallah with the blessing of Banat’s family described the injuries as “bruises and bruises to several areas of the body, including the head, neck, shoulders, chest, back, upper and lower limb, with cuff marks on the wrist and fracture of the rib.”
The report said the initial autopsy results indicated an “abnormal” death, but said the results of laboratory tissue tests would be needed to determine the main cause of death.
Hebron governor Jibreen al-Bakri said Banat had died after “his health deteriorated” during the arrest, which he said was ordered by the PA’s attorney general.
The PA has said that he will start an investigation into what happened.
Standing with his grandfather outside the mosque on Friday before the funeral ceremony, Nizar’s 6-year-old son, Kifa, told CNN: “I heard from my mother that they killed my father. They attacked him and Killed him, and I don’t know why.”
Jihad al-Khatib, a longtime resident of the city, told CNN there was no doubt why the PA targeted Banat. “He is the one who speaks against the oppressor, and for the oppressed… He killed the hope in us. He killed them after exposing their corruption,” he said.
There are reactions from the international community on Banat’s death.
The US State Department said in a statement that it was “deeply disturbed” by the death and urged the PA to “conduct a thorough and transparent investigation and ensure full accountability in this matter.”
The statement continued: “We have serious concerns about the Palestinian Authority’s restrictions on the use of freedom of expression by Palestinians and the persecution of civil society activists and organizations.”
Human rights groups have worried for years what they say is the PA’s growing authoritarianism under President Abbas.
In particular, they are concerned with the 2017 “Law on Electronic Offenses,” which allows for “arbitrary restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, privacy, and protection of data,” according to Human Rights Watch.
Banat himself was arrested last November under that law and spent several days in custody after posting a video on social media calling on the PA to resume its policy of coordinating security with Israeli forces. The leadership was sharply criticized.
That policy, which often sees PA security forces working closely with Israeli security in the West Bank, was suspended by Abbas over the threat of occupation by the Israeli government led by then-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
However, over the years, Abbas has generally been tough to policy, under pressure from major international supporters such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and others, who are heavily involved in the training of PA security forces.
Palestinians often see the security coordination as aiding Israel in military occupation of their land, and people in Hebron expressed anger that they would have cooperated with Israel in the operation that resulted in Banat’s death.
“It’s a crime in all aspects,” Nablus’ Majeed Saqf al-Hait told CNN. “PA is the prime suspect in this crime. Israel is a suspect as a participant in this crime because [the PA arrest operation] Security coordination is required. Also, the US and the EU are partners in this crime through their financial support to the security forces. This is the system which is criminal and responsible for murder and must be held accountable.”
The death comes less than two months after President Abbas canceled elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council, which had not taken place since 2006, in a move that drew widespread criticism from many Palestinians.
Longtime independent politician and human rights activist Mustafa Berghouti told CNN Banat’s death was an extremely damaging moment for the Palestinian Authority.
“It proves that we cannot run without democratic elections, without legislative authority, without an independent judiciary, and without a separation of powers. Palestine needs more than a security system that protects its people from Israeli attacks. is incapable of. Palestine urgently needs democracy and elections,” he said.
.