East Jerusalem man charged with contacting foreign agent

According to indictment, 22-year-old Beit Safafa man contacted Hamas operatives during studies in Cyprus, agreed to gather intelligence on Israeli sites

Ynet|Published: 08.30.10 , 13:32

A 22-year-old resident of Beit Safafa made contact with Hamas operatives during his academic studies in Cyprus and agreed to gather intelligence on sites in Israel, according to an indictment filed Monday by the Jerusalem District Prosecution with the city's district court claimed.

The young man, Ahmad Awad, was charged with contacting a foreign agent.

According to the indictment, in 2008 Awad became acquainted with two Hamas operatives from the Gaza Strip. One of them introduced him to Hamad Asham, another Hamas man, who recruited the defendant to the Jerusalem Muslim Brotherhood. Membership in the group is forbidden according to a decree by the defense minister.

Asham promised Awad that the organization would fund half of his university tuition as well as half of his living expenses. The operative also offered the defendant to join to assist the families of security prisoners in Israel, but the latter refused.

Later, Asham recruited Awad to other activity in Israel including the collection of information on various sites around the country and on political and social issues in Israel.

Asham explained to the defendant that when he arrived in Israel, he would have to write reports on various topics and send them to elements within the organization. Awad accepted the role.

In order to prepare him for the mission, Asham gave Awad "security training", which included training in secret communication with his handlers, using coding programs, surveillance and resistance to Israeli interrogation methods and Israeli intelligence recruitment tactics.

In the final test, Awad was required to submit a report on collecting data in his neighborhood in Beit Safafa.

At the end of the course, Awad was given the alias "Khaled", which he was to use while contacting his handlers in the organization. He left with Asham to Turkey and then eventually arrived in Israel, where he was arrested.