Israeli security forces foiled a terrorist plot to carry out attacks in Judea and Samaria that was directed and funded by Hamas headquarters in Turkey, the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) said on Monday.
The Israel Defense Forces, the Shin Bet, and the Judea and Samaria District of the Israel Police recently arrested seven Palestinian members of a terrorist cell from Nablus in Samaria that planned to carry out attacks against security forces and other targets in the region, the Shin Bet and Israel Police said.
The joint operation, which took place during January and February, led to the confiscation of an M16 rifle and tens of thousands of dollars, as well as to the uncovering of a bomb planted near the Jit Junction, six miles west of Nablus, the statement added.
The explosive device was removed using a loader and was detonated in a controlled manner by bomb disposal experts.
During the first arrest of three terrorist suspects on Jan. 29, Israeli forces confiscated the assault rifle and some $40,000 in cash. Another suspect was apprehended later that day and handed another $20,000 to the forces.
The rest of the suspects were detained during February.
The military prosecution filed statements against the suspects last week, and requested to extend their detention until the end of legal proceedings, the Shin Bet and the police said.
According to the Shin Bet, the investigation found evidence of cooperation between the cell and factors abroad, as well as the method of transferring funds to conduct their terrorist activities.
On Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan prayed for the destruction of Israel, the country’s Türkiye Today online outlet reported.
“We see and know what is happening in Palestine,” Erdoğan said as he led Eid al-Fitr prayers marking the end of Ramadan at the Çamlıca Mosque in Istanbul, according to a translation by Türkiye Today.
“May Allah, for the sake of his name ‘Al-Qahhar,’ destroy and devastate Zionist Israel,” the Islamist Turkish president continued. “And may we all, witnessing what is happening there [in the Gaza Strip], stay united, strong and resilient as brothers; may Allah keep our unity everlasting.”
Turkey has long hosted Hamas officials under the rule of Erdoğan.
The Turkish president has become more hostile toward Israel and closer to Hamas since the terrorist group’s onslaught on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
In July, Erdoğan threatened to invade the Jewish state. “We must be very strong so that Israel can’t do these things to Palestine. Just as we entered Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them. There is nothing we cannot do,” he said in a televised address.
