Palestinian leader sacks aide at centre of sex scandal

[Scurrilous]

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"Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas has sacked his chief of staff who was at the centre of allegations of having solicited sex from a job applicant, officials said on Tuesday.

They said the decision was taken in line with the recommendations of a commission of inquiry which had, however, found Rafiq al-Husseini not guilty of "exploitation of public office for personal benefit or blackmail."

A letter from Abbas to Husseini praised his work as chief of staff but said the commission had recommended the dismissal for Husseini's "personal failings outside work."

Husseini, who insists he has been the victim of a smear campaign but accepted Abbas's decision, was already suspended from his duties in mid-February while the commission appointed by Abbas examined the charges.

A week earlier, Israeli television aired a graphic video showing the chief of staff caught on a hidden camera allegedly soliciting sex from a female job applicant."

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