Mystery surrounds South Africa's stand-off with Israel

South Africa's diplomatic standoff with Israel remains shrouded in mystery.

This follows the use of OR Tambo airport in Joburg by two alleged assassins of a Hamas activist in Dubai, on their return to Tel Aviv in January.

The alleged killers - identified by Dubai police investigating the murder of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh - arrived in Joburg on an Emirates Air flight and transferred to the Israeli airline El Al.

El Al's operations here were already under official scrutiny after it emerged the airline's security operations were run by the Israeli security agency Shin Bet.

It turned out that El Al security staff were protected by protocols of immunity normally reserved for diplomats. Moreover, they were issued weapons registered to the Israeli embassy.

After these facts came to light, the South African government stripped two El Al security guards of their diplomatic passports.

It also threatened to withdraw diplomatic immunity for the El Al operation in South Africa.

A Carte Blanche expose showed the airline's armed security staff carry out profiling targeting Muslims.

The Israelis responded by insisting that if Israel could not guarantee the security of its nationals and its interests, El Al would be forced to withdraw from the country.

The diplomatic ruckus became so intense that, towards the end of last year, the Jewish Board of Deputies and other prominent Jewish organisations in South Africa wrote to Israel's Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asking him to help sort out the matter.

Netanyahu sought a meeting on the issue with President Jacob Zuma at the recent economic conference in Davos, Switzerland.

But Zuma's spokesman, Vincent Magwenya, last week said that no such meeting took place.

Resolving the impasse has since been complicated by the revelation that the two alleged killers were spirited through OR Tambo airport after killing the alleged Hamas gun-runner.

The issues were "being dealt with through the necessary diplomatic channels", said Nomfanelo Kota, spokeswoman for the Department of International Relations and Co-operation.

Zev Krengel, chairman of the Jewish Board of Deputies, said he believed an agreement had been reached between Israel and South Africa.

Iqbal Jassat, of Muslim interest group Media Review Network, said, "We are deeply disappointed that this important matter is clouded in secrecy."