Israeli Health Ministry officials and top Fatah leaders are disputing the results of the autopsy of senior Palestinian official Ziad Abu Ein who died Wednesday during an altercation with Israeli forces.

While the Palestinians claim that Abu Ein died after inhaling tear gas and being struck during a planned Palestinian riot, Israeli officials said that the autopsy report showed a pre-existing heart condition which resulted in a fatal heart attack brought on by stress.

Hussein al-Sheikh, a former Palestinian minister, said that Jordanian and Palestinian doctors concluded that Abu Ein died “after being struck, inhaling tear gas and a delay in providing medical attention.”

Disputing Sheikh’s conclusion, Israeli health officials stated that “Abu Ein’s death was caused by a blockage of a coronary artery due to hemorrhaging beneath an arteriosclerotic plaque,” which was revealed during the autopsy.

A statement by the Health Ministry said that Abu Ein “suffered from an ischemic heart disease” and that “blood vessels in his heart were found to be over 80% blocked by plaque.”

They further explained that “the bleeding could have been induced by stress” and that “the poor condition of [Abu Ein’s] heart caused him to be more sensitive to stress.”

The Health Ministry added that the results of the autopsy showed light hemorrhaging around Abu Ein’s neck.

Could Abu Ein’s Death Have Been Prevented?

Abu Ein died while being transported to a Ramallah hospital after collapsing during the clashes. Middle East correspondent for the British Sky News channel Tom Rayner revealed that Palestinian demonstrators prevented an Israeli medic from providing lifesaving aid to Abu Ein.

According to a report in The Algemeiner, Rayner said, “When he’s on the floor, an Israeli medic does come up to him, she tries to clear an area around him, but Palestinians pick him up and take him straight to a vehicle.”

Earlier on Twitter, Rayner wrote, “When Abu Ein is unconscious on ground, Israel medic attempts to assist, asks crowd to make space, Palestinians rush him to a vehicle instead.” Rayner also reported that Abu Ein repeatedly called the IDF officer he clashed with a “dog.”

Separate footage shot by Kremlin broadcaster RT shows Abu Ein sitting up after his altercation with the IDF officer, clutching his chest, despite reports that he was lying on the ground “unconscious.”

Abu Ein the Terrorist

Abu Ein spent several years in an Israeli prison for taking part in a 1979 terrorist attack in Tiberias. Two youths were killed and 36 others were wounded in the attack. After fleeing to the US, Abu Ein was the first Palestinian ever extradited from the US to Israel in 1981.

The convicted terrorist was sentenced to life imprisonment but was released in the 1985 Jibril prisoner exchange.

Head of the PLO’s Commission Against the Separation Wall and Settlement, Abu Ein was responsible for organizing “popular resistance” against Israeli forces protecting communities and Judea and Samaria as well as forces stationed along the security barrier.

As a result of Abu Ein’s death, the Palestinian Authority announced it was suspending all security cooperation with Israel. PA President Mahmoud Abbas called Abu Ein a “martyr.”