Palestinian Authority freezes assets of slain TV director

GAZA — The Palestinian Authority has frozen the assets of the slain broadcasting director assassinated last week by Fatah dissidents.

PA sources said chairman Yasser Arafat has ordered the freezing of assets belonging to the late Hisham Miki, director of the Palestinian Broadcasting Corp. Miki, 54, was killed by three assassins in a Gaza hotel.

The sources said Arafat was acting amid appeals by Fatah militants, who called for an investigation of Miki. The militants accused Miki of smuggling up to $8 million in embezzled funds to bank accounts abroad.

Miki, the sources said, was assessed by PA investigators of holding $17 million in assets in Gaza and abroad. These included homes in Gaza, London, Cairo and the United States as well as numerous bank accounts.

PA officials have confirmed that Miki's assets have been frozen and that his wife and children have been ordered to remain in Gaza. They said at this point the PA has not brought any formal charges against the longtime associate of Arafat, who began his career as a television cameraman.

But on Wednesday, the London-based A-Sharq Al Awsat reported that the Miki investigation has been closed by the PA and no more measures would be taken. This, as Miki's widow has denied that her passport was confiscated.

In another development, PA police arrested three Palestinians who allegedly worked for Israeli intelligence. PA sources said the three detainees are believed to have helped Israel assassinate Thabet Thabet, Fatah's leader in the West Bank city of Tulkam.