Birth: NULL/NULL/1958 Death:NULL/NULL/NULL
Born in Taybeh, in the Triangle, on 19 Dec. 1958; studied Medicine at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, graduating in 1983 with a specialization in Gynecology; later practiced at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem; first met PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat in 1984 on a trip to Tunis with Palestinian journalist Raymonda Tawil); played a mediating role in meetings between PLO members and Israeli officials at a time when it was difficult to do so; moved to East Jerusalem in 1987; failed to win a place on the left-wing Ratz Party in the 1988 Knesset elections; served as adviser to the PLO at the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference; also served as contact between the PLO and Hamas after he allied himself with the Israeli Arab Islamic movement forming the Arab Movement for Change in Dec. 1995; served as advisor of Pres. Arafat on Israeli affairs since the Israeli recognition of the PLO in 1993; formed the Arab Movement for Change Party (Hebrew acronym: Ta’al), which became registered as a legitimate political party after seven attempts, but withdrew from the Knesset elections in May 1996; instead, formed a joint list with the Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash), and was elected to the Knesset in 1999; MK since 1999, currently as one of three Hadash-Ta`al representatives (together with Mohammad Barakeh and Issam Makhoul); serves also as member of the Knesset’s Environmental Lobby and as member of the House Committee, the Economics Committee, and the Parliamentary Inquiry Committees on Violence in Sports and on the Trading of Women.
