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Israel indicts leader of Islamic Jihad, whose capture sparked Gaza violence

Bassam al-Saadi is accused by the IDF of being an “influential senior official” who engaged in “core terrorist activities.”

Bassam al-Saadi, Aug. 2, 2022. Credit: Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).
Bassam al-Saadi, Aug. 2, 2022. Credit: Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).

Israel indicted a senior commander of the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) on Thursday, whose detention earlier this month sparked a brief conflict in the Gaza Strip earlier this month and whose detention is sure to exacerbate tensions.

Dawood Shehab, a spokesman for PIJ, claimed that Israel was creating charges based on “misleading and unfounded accusations,” reported Reuters. “Reaching a dead end would give us the full right to use other tracks and other options.”

According to a statement by the Israel Defense Forces, the allegations against Bassam al-Saadi, captured on Aug. 1 during a raid in the West Bank city of Jenin, include incitement and service in an illegal organization.

The military claims that al-Saadi is an “influential senior official” who engaged in “core terrorist activities.”

The IDF launched “Operation Breaking Dawn” from Aug. 5-7, which also saw more than 1,100 rockets launched by PIJ towards Israel, with many falling short of their target.

The complex was “designed to have the capability to produce weapons-grade plutonium,” the IDF said.
All assailants were neutralized.
Two of the soldiers were severely wounded by an anti-tank missile and three others were hurt by a drone strike.
Israel temporarily asked people of all faiths to avoid worship at major religious sites in Jerusalem’s Old City, the prime minister said.
Talks with Tehran are progressing “very nicely,” president says, adding that military strikes have crippled the Islamic Republic’s forces and new leaders are “more reasonable.”
The Iranian-backed terrorist organization has been firing rockets and suicide drones at Israel.