Questions persist about Palestinian's encounter at border crossing

The Gaza-based journalist walked into the Allenby Bridge border crossing between Jordan and the Israeli-controlled West Bank one day early this summer. There, the 24-year-old says, he was sexually humiliated and physically assaulted by Israeli security -- while an escort from the Dutch Embassy waited for him outside.

The Israeli government released a statement soon afterward acknowledging that Omer and his luggage were searched "due to suspicion that he had been in contact with hostile elements." It denies that Omer was ever forcibly disrobed and states that "at no time was the complainant subjected to either physical or mental violence."

The report cites "doubts as to the sincerity of the situation" and concludes that all of Omer's claims in the June incident were "found to be without foundation."

The case, however, has endured and become an ongoing cause for international diplomats and activists. In a recent report to the United Nations Security Council, Richard Falk, the world body's special rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territories, highlighted Omer's case and called for further investigation.

An attempt to unravel the facts only shines a light on the mutual distrust between Palestinians and Israelis, with Palestinians contending that an institutional bias prevents their claims from getting a proper hearing, and Israelis wary of those traveling from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

Since the militant Islamic group took control of Gaza in June 2007, after a unity government with Fatah collapsed, Israel has virtually sealed the narrow coastal ribbon, preventing most Gazans from leaving. When Omer wanted to travel to Europe to accept a journalism award, the Dutch government provided the necessary diplomatic escort; it was on his return that the alleged abuse took place.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry and several Dutch lawmakers immediately urged an inquiry.

"We basically have two different accounts that contradict each other," said Rob Dekker, a spokesman for the Dutch Foreign Ministry. "It would be good to have an independent investigation."

But the Israeli government says its internal investigation will suffice.

"As far as we are concerned, the case is closed," said Arye Mekel, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry. "They analyzed his complaints one by one and rejected them as false."