President Mahmoud Abbas announced the end of Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi's career as Palestinian Chief Justice and Supreme Judge on Monday, with sources citing corruption charges brought forward by whistle-blower Fahmi Shabana months earlier.
With Shabana's allegations principally focused on former presidential adviser Rafiq Al-Husseini, who was embroiled in a sex-tape scandal and accusations of selling land to Israel, the only mention of charges against Tamimi came in early May, when the sheikh made a public statement denying rumors that Abbas was charging him with corruption.
Tamimi, who was forced into retirement with a pension following the announcement according to the governmental news agency WAFA, said on 6 May that Abbas "had no intention of pensioning off" the chief judge.
Tamimi was accused of corruption by Shabana, a former Palestinian intelligence officer who made news when he leaked a sex-tape to the Israeli press, forcing investigations of top PA officials following what the whistle-blower called a refusal of the government to look into his allegations.
It is unclear what sort of corruption charges were filed against Tamimi, though a source in the government said Shabana made available a phone recording of Tamimi and presented it as proof of the man's corruption.
In May, however, head of the Palestinian anti-corruption unit Rafiq Natsha told Ma’an that Tamimi had nothing to do with the Al-Husseini corruption scandal.
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