An investigation conducted by the Israel Police’s Northern District and Shin Bet revealed a network smuggling weapons from Jordan to Israel to arm terrorists and local crime syndicates.
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The Northern District Attorney’s Office filed two indictments against an Israeli residing in the Gilboa, and a Palestinian from Jenin who were involved in the smuggling ring.
Khaled Abu Omar, 43, from the Arab town of Muqeible in the Gliboa Regional Council was arrested for attempted arms smuggling, obstruction of justice, hiring workers illegally, and transporting a foreign resident.
Additionally, Tareq Bani Hassan, 30, a Palestinian from a town near Jenin in the West Bank, is charged with weapon smuggling offenses (import, export, transportation, and possession), illegal residency, and dangerous misuse of firearms.
Recently, the police and Shin Bet received about a weapons smuggling ring from Jordan involving Israelis and Palestinians. The Shin Bet opened an investigation with the assistance of the Israel Police’s Northern District, leading to the arrest of the two suspects.
"Tareq Bani Hassan confessed in his investigation to several cases of smuggling weapons from Jordan to Israel," said First Sergeant Khaled Zineldin, an investigator in the Israel Police Northern District’s Special Investigations Unit.
"The smuggling took place near the Ashdot Ya'akov area, from where the weapons were transferred to Jenin. Some of the weapons were sold there, and others made their way to Israel via a breach in the barrier in the Gilboa area," he explained.
According to the charges the two suspects had an early acquaintance. Abu Omar offered Bani Hassan to smuggle weapons from Jenin to Israel for him in exchange for 500 shekels in cash for each firearm. The weapons, mostly rifles and pistols, haven’t been seized yet.
According to First Sergeant Zineldin, "The charges touch on several cases of weapons smuggling from Jordan to Israel and the transfer of weapons through a breach in the border fence to Israel. Fortunately, we managed to cut off a dangerous smuggling route for military equipment from Jordan to Israel. Any illegal weapons moving into Israel could be used for terror attacks, so we’ll continue to pursue these smugglers and bring them to justice."