ISIS flag graffito in East Jerusalem
Deri asks to revoke citizenship, residency of two ISIS operatives
The interior minister has written to the attorney general for permission to begin legal proceedings against two East Jerusalem men affiliated with ISIS; this is the first time that operatives of the organization have had such requests filed against them in Israel.
For the first time in Israel, the authorities have taken steps this week to revoke the citizenship and permanent residency of two ISIS operatives.
Minister of the Interior Aryeh Deri (Shas) filed a request this week with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to revoke the citizenship of Khalil Khalil, 26, a resident of East Jerusalem, who has been condemned to two years' imprisonment after he travelled to Syria with the intention of joining ISIS's ranks.
Deri also requested to revoke the permanent residency of Lukman Atun, 24, also of East Jerusalem. Atun is accused of having established an ISIS cell in Sur Baher with the intention of carrying out terrorist attacks on targets in Israel and on foreign embassies.
ISIS flag graffito in East Jerusalem
Khalil was tried in the Jerusalem District Court in Jerusalem. He confessed to contacting a foreign agent and attempting to join a disallowed organization as part of a plea bargain.
The Citizenship Law empowers the minister of the interior to file a request with the courts to revoke citizenship on the condition that the minister has first received approval for this from the attorney general. In recent years, several interior ministers have, in individual cases, begun citizenship- and permanent-residency-revocation proceedings against persons involved in terrorist activities.
Since the beginning of the current wave in terrorism in Israel in the fall of 2015, the rate has increased. Since the wave's commencement, four persons have had their permanent residency permits revoked for having been involved in terrorist activities. A further eight persons are currently in similar proceedings. Two requests have been filed with courts to revoke citizenships. According to the Population and Immigration Authority, this is the first time that such proceedings have been employed against ISIS operatives.
Deri based his request on a professional assessment provided by the Shin Bet.
Khalil, who has held Israeli citizenship since August 2009, left for Syria in January of last year with another person. He stayed there for three weeks in an ISIS "military training camp," took part in training exercises, and asked to participate in operations.
Aryeh Deri (Photo: Gil Yohanan)
The interior minister wrote in his letter to the attorney general, "On realizing that he couldn't quickly become a senior member of the organization, (Khalil) requested authorization from the organization's command to leave and return to Israel." This trip was not exposed in Khalil's indictment, which charged him for an additional trip that he took during which he was arrested by Turkish security officials when he attempted to cross the border from Syria into their country.
Regarding Atun's establishment of an ISIS cell in Israel, Deri's letter reads, "In the framework of his activity, he taught four youths in an area mosque all the relevant information concerning the organization's activities, ways of joining it and methods of action."
According to the Shin Bet's assessment, Atun later attempted to obtain funding for his cell members to travel to Syria and join the fighting there, travelling via Turkey. However, when these attempts failed, Atun turned to planning terrorist attacks in Israel.
In March of this year, after Atun's cell was exposed, he was indicted on charges of attempting to join and operate for a disallowed organization, attempting to join a terrorist organization, supporting a terrorist organization, and attempting to illegally exit the country. He remains in detention until the completion of his trial.
In Deri's letter to Mandelblit on Khalil, he wrote, "There is no need to elaborate on the importance of Israeli citizenship, which includes a duty of loyalty between the citizen and their country and between the country and its citizens. It is clear that (Khalil's) actions constitute a breach of the duty of loyalty to the State of Israel, as they undermine its very existence.
"Against the backdrop of rising global terrorism, we must fight with all our strength against the phenomenon of persons voluntarily joining terrorist organizations. Revoking (Khalil's) citizenship will serve as a genuine deterrent to anyone who is considering joining a terrorist organization."
