Two Arab Israelis from the Galilee in northern Israel have been indicted for supporting the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist organization.
Nazareth resident Mahmoud Abed al-Fatah, 24, and Ashraf Arabi'i, 35, of Shfaram, were indicted in Nazareth District Court Thursday.
Al-Fatah was indicted for making contact with a foreign agent and supporting a terrorist organization, while Arbi'i was indicted for illegal weapons offenses and supporting a terrorist organization.
According to the indictment against al-Fatah, he was an active supporter of ISIS from 2014 until his arrest in June 2016. He was a regular visitor to jihadist websites, and avid viewer of ISIS propaganda videos, who regularly discussed his support for the terror group and plans to leave Israel to enlist in ISIS's ranks in Syria with his friends and associates.
In April 2014, al-Fatah made contact with another Nazareth resident, who had traveled to Syria in January of that year to fight with ISIS. The pair conversed over the course of several days, after which Arbi'i handed al-Fatah a phone number and instructed him to continue their conversations via the Whatsapp instant messenger.
At the start of 2015, al-Fatah established contact with a fellow Muslim extremist named Mohammed Abdullah from Jerusalem, with whom he arranged to meet at the Al Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem's Temple Mount.
Following their meeting, the two were in regularly contact via Facebook, and Abdullah eventually revealed to al-Fatah that he had since joined the ranks of ISIS in Syria, where he fought with an explosive belt tied to his waist, primed and ready to detonate at will.
During the course of their conversations, Abdullah urged al-Fatah to join ISIS in Syria. Al-Fatah, who was engaged to be married, responded positively, and suggested he travel to Turkey with his wife under the pretext of a honeymoon, and from there cross into Syria together. Abdullah agreed to the arrangement, and told him to make contact again once they arrived in Istanbul, where ISIS operatives could help smuggle the pair to the "Islamic State" capital of Raqqa.
Arbi'i's indictment stated that he had kept an unlicensed pistol at his home, along with ammunition - some of which he had sold on. He had also reportedly given the pistol to another individual.
Arbi'i was an active supporter of ISIS, and had disseminated jihadist propaganda to others, as well as arranging to join the terror group in Syria.
The two cases are still being investigated by the Shin Bet security service and Israel Police. The prosecution has asked for the pair to be held in custody until the end of proceedings against them.