Prominent Palestinian scholar and dissident dies from coronavirus

A prominent Palestinian scholar and dissident died from coronavirus-related complications on Monday, The New Arab’s Arabic-language sister site report.

Abdul Sattar Qasem, in his early seventies, passed away in a Nablus hospital, in the occupied West Bank, where he had worked as a professor of political science at An-Najah National University for over three decades.

His condition is said to have deteriorated significantly over the past two weeks.

Born in the village of Deir Ghassoun in 1948, Qassem graduated from the American University Cairo with a Bachelor's degree in political science in 1972.

In 1977, he earned a Master's degree in economics at the University of Missouri, where he later received his PhD in political science.

He was a staunch critic of security coordination between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israel, serving time as a political prisoner of both parties.

In 2016, he was detained by the PA on a roster of charges, including slander and incitement, after he made televised calls for implementing the Palestinian Basic Law, which limits presidential terms to four years.

He also called for the implementation of the Palestinian revolutionary law, which calls for charges of treason to be bought against "collaborators" of Israel.

He is said to have sought candidacy in the upcoming Palestinian elections.

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