Members of an eastern Jerusalem-based Arab terror cell have been arrested and indicted by Israeli authorities, it was announced on Wednesday. The cell is believed to be responsible for the murder of two IDF border guards in separate attacks, as well as plotting various other murderous attacks. Officials believe that Hamas’s increased foothold in the nation’s capital is linked to the current sharp rise in terrorism by Jerusalem Arabs.
Senior Shin Bet (Shabak) officials said that the seven Arabs in the cell, including six from eastern Jerusalem, were indicted early last week on charges of murder, attempted murder, weapons trafficking and illegal possession of firearms. Mahmad Abu-Sneina, the leader of the group, was charged with the murder of Border Guardsman Rami Zuheiri on January 24 at a checkpoint near Shuafat, as well as the July 11 shooting death of Jerusalem police officer David Shriki near the Lion’s Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City. In both incidents Abu-Sneina, a resident of Anata in eastern Jerusalem, was aided by an accomplice.
In addition to the murders they committed, members of the terror cell are suspected of planning a number of other attacks, including the murder of another Jerusalem police officer in the Old City, a shooting attack on a bus station at the capital’s French Hill Junction, a highway attack on a police car, and an attack at a checkpoint in a Jewish area of Hebron. The group is also believed to have plotted to kidnap Jewish security officers in Jerusalem.
Abu-Sneina is the son of another terrorist, Adnan Abu-Sneina, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1981 for his role in the murder of an off-duty soldier and released several years later as part of a prisoner swap deal.
These attacks are just some of the many attempted in the last few years by Jerusalem Arabs. Two deadly attacks this year claimed the lives of 11 people (the Merkaz HaRav shooting and the first bulldozer attack). Since 2007, no less than seven terror attacks have been prevented in the city, including the attempted assassination of a government minister from the Shas party, an attack on the hotel at Kibbutz Ramat Rachel at the outskirts of the capital, and the shooting down of U.S. President George Bush’s helicopter during a landing at Hebrew University.
Along with the announcement of the latest terror-related arrests, security officials linked the sharp rise in terrorism in Jerusalem with increased activity of Hamas in the Arab neighborhoods in eastern Jerusalem. They said that areas like Sur Baher, Jabel Mukabar, the Shuafat refugee camp and Issawiya, long known as hotspots for terrorism, have become increasingly infiltrated by Hamas. Hamas now controls Gaza and threatens to take over from the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria.
The officials presented the rising terror wave as proof of the need to inflict harsher punishments, such as the demolition of the terrorists’ homes and financial penalties on family members, aimed at deterring future attacks. “This will have a long-term effect on people and contribute to deterring others from perpetrating attacks in the future," said a senior security official.
The security officers also called for a stronger security presence in high-risk areas of Jerusalem.