Prosecutors were expected to file an indictment Friday against a 31-year-old resident of the northern Arab city of Tamra on security-related charges after an investigation found that he had repeatedly sought contact with Hamas’ military wing in the Gaza Strip and later established contact with Iranian intelligence operatives, Israeli authorities said.
Sultan Abu al-Hija was arrested Aug. 28 in a joint operation by the Shin Bet domestic security agency and the Israel Police Northern District’s central investigative unit. Officers from the Border Police’s northern National Guard unit carried out the arrest.
Arrest of Sultan Abu al-Hija
(Video: Israel Police)
According to the Shin Bet and police investigation, Abu al-Hija repeatedly approached the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, seeking to secretly assist the group.
Prosecutors also allege that Abu al-Hija established contact with Iranian intelligence operatives. Authorities said he was arrested before he was able to carry out any assignments on their behalf.
The indictment was expected to be filed Friday in Haifa District Court by attorney Shir Moshiyov of the Haifa District Prosecutor’s Office.
The Shin Bet and police said they viewed “with great severity any involvement by Israeli citizens in activity that endangers the security of the state and its citizens.”
(Photo: Israel Police)
The agencies said they would continue using the powers and measures available to them under Israeli law to investigate and prosecute people involved in such activity.
Abu al-Hija is an Israeli citizen from Tamra, an Arab city in northern Israel. The allegations against him remain unproven unless and until established in court.