As part of a joint operation by the Shin Bet, the Israel Police and the IDF, a number of Arab-Israeli citizens from Kafr Qasim were arrested in July on suspicion of receiving a large quantity of high-quality weapons. Two Iranian-made IEDs and a large quantity of weapons were found in their possession. On Thursday, four indictments were filed before the Central District Court on charges of weapons offenses.
The defendants are Galal Harsa, 28, from Kafr Qasim, Ahmad 'Issa, 30, Muhammad 'Issa, from Kafr Qasim, 39, and Noah Asem, 30, from Lod.
A raid by Shin Bet, SWAT and Border Police fighters on a residential compound in Lod identified additional Israeli civilians who intended to use one of the IEDs for criminal purposes.
The Shin Bet investigation revealed that Hezbollah worked to recruit and operate a smugglers' network in Israel in order to receive unusual weapons and distribute them to various elements, including criminal elements.
The weapons seized from the defendants, photo: ISA spokesperson
A senior Shin Bet official: "This affair illustrates once again the efforts of terrorist elements from Hezbollah and Iran to exploit Israel's Arab citizens for security activity against the state. The investigation also revealed that the seam between security and criminal is very thin."
The Shin Bet said: "The Israel Security Agency will continue to act with determination to detect and thwart any intention to infiltrate weapons on the part of Iran and Hezbollah, and will take all the means at its disposal to thwart activity that endangers the security of the State of Israel and its citizens, and will bring the parties involved to justice. This affair reflects the Shin Bet's increasing preoccupation with weapons and its spillover into both security and criminal matters. The service will continue to expand its activity in this field."
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