Lola Loves Glaring Errors

There's something, um, off about this article in Haaretz this morning. An Israeli Arab lawyer was arrested at an airport in Tel Aviv after he refused to take off his pants during a security check. He said he would rather leave the airport than take his pants off, at which time he was handcuffed and his pants were removed anyway. Haaretz writer Ruth Sinai writes, "The authorities found no irregularities and released Dukhi, three hours after his flight was scheduled."

Police said Dukhi was released as soon as the search was completed. "Police got a call from the security officials in the Sde Dov airport, saying there was a man there who was refusing to be checked and was becoming unruly," police said. "Patrol officers arrived at the scene and told the suspect that since he was refusing to be searched, he would have to be arrested. Since the suspect refused, the police officers arrested him, searched him, and when the search was completed, he was released on the spot."

How is it that he was released immediately after the search was completed but somehow three hours after his plane had departed? Either the search of his pants took three hours or the police spokesman is lying.