BBC Monitoring

Text of report in English by independent, non-governmental Palestinian Ma'an News Agency website

["Palestinian Chief Judge Accuses Hamas-affiliated Media of Libel" - Ma'an headline]

Jerusalem, 9 December (Ma'an) -Palestinian Supreme Judge Tayseer Tamimi accused the Hamas-affiliated Al-Aqsa satellite TV and other Hamas-affiliated media of deliberately publishing false news about him on 9 December.

Tamimi called on these media to find out the truth before publishing news reports. He also called on websites to avoid spreading rumours without first checking their sources.

Hamas-affiliated media had implicated Tamimi in a decision by the Fatah-led Palestinian [National] Authority to cut off the salaries of Health Ministry employees in the Gaza Strip. Tamimi denied the accusation.

Source: Ma'an News Agency website, Bethlehem, in English 1630 gmt 9 Dec 07