Shin Bet takes US lawyer's computer

Israel's intelligence service confiscated a computer from a controversial American lawyer this week as he left the country after gathering evidence for a legal action in the US courts against Ariel Sharon, George Bush and weapons manufacturers.

Members of Shin Bet stopped Stanley Cohen as he was flying out of Tel Aviv on Tuesday and told him to hand over his computer for a routine security check. They refused to return the machine even when he said he would rather keep it and not fly.

Mr Cohen, an American Jew, represents 19 US citizens of Palestinian origin who are suing over alleged torture, illegal arrests and other breaches of international human rights law. He spent a fortnight gathering testimony and evidence in Israel and the occupied territories in preparation for the lawsuit.

As well as Mr Bush and Mr Sharon, the targets of the action include members of the Israeli cabinet, Israeli army officers, and US arms manufacturers which supply weapons to the Israeli military.

"This is a critical blow to attorney-client relations, and I advise the Israeli authorities not to make any use of the data in the computer against my clients. I intend to add myself to the claim I filed in Washington on behalf of the Palestinians," Mr Cohen said.

Mr Cohen was already known to the authorities as the lawyer who successfully prevented a Hamas leader, Mousa Abu Marzuk, being extradited from the US to Israel. He also drew criticism in America when he questioned whether Osama bin Laden was responsible for the September 11 attacks and said the American government would use them as an excuse to target Israel's enemies.

Mr Cohen's lawyer in Israel, Leah Tsemel, is petitioning the high court to prevent the state from making use of any information on the computer or revealing its contents.

"Why did they have to keep it unless they want to take the data?" she asked. "I immediately wrote to the state attorney seeking an assurance that they will not take the information but I haven't received a reply."

Shin Bet claimed the seizure of the computer was a routine security measure to ensure the safety of the plane and passengers, and said the machine would be sent to Mr Cohen "after a further security check".

Last year, Shin Bet confiscated a computer from a French journalist at Tel Aviv airport. That machine was never returned.