gelatik
24.05.02, 23:29
The Israeli security forces have freed a British woman detained at a checkpoint
on the border with the Gaza Strip after what appears to have been a false
alarm.
The woman, who was driving a Canadian Embassy-registered car, had been detained
after a search of the boot appeared to detect traces of explosives but these
were later thought to be "trace elements of chemical materials", the Canadian
Department of Foreign Affairs said, quoting Israeli officials.
A spokesman for the Department, Reynald Doiron, said the woman was an employee
of the Canada Fund aid organisation in the West Bank town of Ramallah, and was
on official business when she was stopped at the Erez crossing.
An Israeli police spokesman told Reuters news agency that a statement had been
taken from the woman and an investigation was still under way.
Israeli radio stations reported that sniffer dogs had been used to search the
woman's car.
The incident comes on the eve of a visit to Israel by Canadian Foreign Minister
Bill Graham, who is currently touring the region.
