Hamas terrorist Shadi Said was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Wednesday for heading a terrorist cell that planned to kidnap Israeli soldiers. Said led an effort to kidnap soldiers three years ago, shortly before the kidnapping of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.
He was arrested two years ago, as he attempted to infiltrate Israel.
Said hoped that by taking a hostage, he could convince Israel to release imprisoned terrorists, among them his brother Khareem.
In preparation for the kidnap attempt, Said had trained in Hamas camps in Gaza, prosecutors said. He also purchased a Kalashnikov rifle and several magazines of bullets.
His next step was to build a terrorist cell, which he did in coordination with members of the “Shahid” (martyr)terrorist group, a branch of Hamas. The group obtained handcuffs, equipment to cut a security fence, and a spray meant to knock their victim unconscious.
Said and two other cell members waited for three days near an IDF position in hopes of kidnapping a soldier, but were unable to do so due to large numbers of soldiers in the area. Eventually the three gave up, and attempted to fire on soldiers instead, but were driven away by Arab residents of the area who feared an IDF response.
Judges in the Be'er Sheva District Court convicted Said of attempted kidnapping and other terrorism-related charges. His actions were intended to cause harm and to undermine Israeli security, the judges determined.