In a joint operation by the GSS (Shin Bet internal security agency) and the Israel Police, three Israeli citizens and three Arabs from Hebron were arrested for questioning, on suspicion of trafficking in Airsoft rifles that were converted into firearms capable of injuring and killing people.
In recent years, the scope of improvised weapons in Judea and Samaria has increased to an alarming degree, which are used, among other things, for terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF forces.
The improvised weapons are more accessible by virtue of being cheaper and affordable compared to standard weapons. Some of the improvised weapons are weapons that have been converted from Airsoft rifles, using barrel and assembly replacement.
The GSS says that the accessibility of Airsoft rifles that can be purchased in stores in Israel has developed into a "conversion industry" that has turned toy rifles ostensibly into firearms for all purposes.
In recent years, a number of attacks have been carried out using altered weapons, including the shooting attack near the police national headquarters in Jerusalem in October 2009, the murder of the late Henkin couple in October 2015 and a number of shooting attacks on IDF forces in Judea and Samaria in the past two years.
At the center of the investigation was Yuri Shaulov, a resident of Sderot, who runs an Airsoft store. For the past two years, Shaulov had sold and complete and incomplete Airsoft rifles to Muhammad Abu Haya, a weapons dealer from Hebron, who sold the same rifles and rifle parts he purchased from Shaulov to various parties in Hebron who used them to convert them into firearms.
The GSS investigation revealed that Shaulov sold the Airsoft rifles, even though he was aware that the law prohibited their sale to Judea and Samaria, and that the weapons he sold were intended for conversion to standard weapons.
In order to carry on doing business with Abu Haya, Shaulov enlisted the help of two Israeli citizens - Hassan Elaubra of Rahat and Fares Abu Alqian of Hura, who served as emissaries between him and Shaulov and physically moved the weapons to Judea and Samaria.
The Southern District Attorney's Office has filed serious indictments against those involved in the case.
The GSS stated that "General Security Service will continue to act to enforce the ban on trade in Airsoft rifles to elements in Judea and Samaria, as they may be converted into live weapons. The sale of these weapons feeds a dangerous industry of manufacturing improvised weapons, which make their way into the hands of terrorist elements and are used in terrorist attacks against Israeli targets. "