Ruhi al-Khatib

"Ruhi al-Khatib" ( _ar. روحي الخطيب, ArTranslit|Ruḥi al-Khateeb) (1914-1994) was the mayor of Al-Quds (East Jerusalem) from 1957 to 1967.

His term of service came to an end after the Israeli Defense Force took control of the city in 1967's Six Day War. Al-Khatib did not acknowledge his dismissal, but remained in Jerusalem and continued to work as director of the Arab Hotels Company and the Jerusalem Electric Company.

In March 1968 he was woken by Israeli policemen at 3:00 AM and told he was wanted for interrogation. But instead of being taken to interrogation, he was given a deportation order alleging that his presence in Jerusalem constituted a danger to the security of Israel. He was then escorted to the border and handed over to the Jordanian authorities. He was not allowed to take anything with him, and his family learned of his expulsion from the radio.

His wife and two children decided to stay in Jerusalem, hoping for his return. In the autumn of 1969, Mrs. Khatib was detained and interrogated. She was then sentenced to three months in prison. No reason was given. After protests from many people, Mrs. Khatib was released after fifteen days. She was then given a permit to visit her husband and undergo an operation in Beirut. When she tried to return to Jerusalem after her convalescence, she was turned away at the border and refused entry. (Gilmour, pp. 136-137)

Al-Khatib returned to the West Bank in May 1993, and he died 6 July 1994.

References

* David Gilmour: "Dispossessed. The Ordeal of the Palestinians". Sphere books, Great Britain, 1983, (first published in 1980),
* http://middleeastreference.org.uk/palbiograph.html#RuhialKhatib