A 28-year-old man from the northern Israeli town of Ilut has been charged after allegedly making 14 threatening calls to police over the course of a single night, including a claim that he had planted an explosive device near the Netanyahu family home in Caesarea.
According to police, Mahmoud Abd al-Majid repeatedly called the emergency hotline after midnight on August 12, threatening attacks against Jews, Arabs, police officers and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At one point, he allegedly told an operator: “I planted an explosive device near Bibi Netanyahu’s house.”
Netanyahu family home in Caesarea
(Photo: Yair Sagi)
He was arrested by Nazareth police after several hours and, following several days of questioning, was indicted on 14 counts of making threats, as well as assault, assault causing actual bodily harm and intentional damage to a vehicle. Police have asked the court to keep him in custody until the end of the proceedings.
“On August 12, a prolonged sequence of 14 calls to the 100 emergency hotline began, all after midnight,” said Maj. Tiraz Dala, an investigations officer with Nazareth police. “The defendant identified himself by name and began issuing threats to carry out attacks against Jews, Arabs and the prime minister. He added that he was armed with an M-16 rifle and a handgun, and that he was in Ilut waiting for a police car to arrive so he could attack the officers.”
Dala said that in another call, Abd al-Majid claimed he had an explosive device and was on his way to a police station in Haifa to detonate it.
“He told our emergency operator, ‘If anyone wants to live, they should leave the station now,’” she said. “He called again and said that there would be an explosion in Haifa in 10 minutes and that he had already planted the device.”
According to police, Abd al-Majid began making the calls in Ilut and later traveled to Haifa by Metronit, the city’s bus rapid transit system. At around 6:17 a.m., police allege, he approached an exit door, picked up a trash bin and assaulted a passenger without provocation.
“He attacked him with his hands, knocked him down and stripped him during the fight,” Dala said. “He then attacked another passenger, got off the Metronit and returned to Ilut by public transportation. We arrested him after he returned home.”
Police said that once in custody, Abd al-Majid refused to be questioned by a Jewish investigator and demanded to speak only with an Arab investigator.
“Beyond the serious criminal aspect, this is a defendant who for hours tied up the 100 emergency hotline, whose purpose is to save lives and respond to emergencies,” Dala said. “We treated every call seriously and did everything possible to locate and arrest him.”
She added that the calls occupied large numbers of officers in two police districts and said police would act against violence, racism and threats to civilians.
Attorney Aboudi Fahoum, representing Abd al-Majid on behalf of the Public Defender’s Office, said the defense would respond in court after reviewing the investigative material.
“This is an unfortunate case attributed to the defendant,” Fahoum said. “His place is in rehabilitation, not punishment. We will oppose detention until the end of proceedings and seek his release to an appropriate framework.”