Israeli security forces said on Tuesday they thwarted a Hamas terror cell that was planning to assassinate Israeli leaders, abduct soldiers and bomb Jerusalem’s light rail.
According to Israeli officials, “Hamas terrorists from eastern Jerusalem planned to attack Israeli targets” in early April 2022.
This involved assassination plots against public figures, including Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right member of Israel’s parliament. The suspects also allegedly acquired a drone with the intention of arming it and attacking the Jerusalem light rail.
“This cell was led by Rashid Rashak, a prominent Hamas militant in the Old City of Jerusalem, who also planned—together with Mansur Tzafadi, a Hamas militant from Abu Tor—to carry out a shooting attack or suicide attack in Jerusalem,” Israel’s Shin Bet security agency said in a statement. “The members of the cell also planned to hide in Hebron or Jenin after carrying out their planned attacks.”
Israeli officials said Rashak established a “network of Jerusalem militants” to cause disturbances in the city, including on the Temple Mount, during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.
Shin Bet and Israel Police arrested five suspected terrorists and seized the drone they allegedly wanted to use against the light rail, a camera, cash and other “Hamas organization equipment.”
Jerusalem prosecutors are filing charges against the suspects.
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