Under the guise of donating to children in Gaza, an Israeli Arab transferred more than $450,000 to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group, according to an indictment served against the suspect on Friday.
Ahmad Diab, 36, from the Lower Galilee city of Tamra, east of Acre, was arrested in June in a joint operation of the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Northern District police. He was suspected of committing security offenses involving contact with a foreign agent and aiding a terrorist organization.
During a search at Diab’s home, cash totaling more than 70,000 shekels and hundreds of dollars were found.
Investigators said the defendant met over the past several months with an intermediary in Judea and Samaria, originally a Gaza resident, and through him transferred the large sums to the PIJ, the indictment read.
The police and Shin Bet established an evidentiary basis during the investigation against Diab for the offenses attributed to him, and the Northern District Prosecutor’s Office filed an indictment against him on Friday morning, Maariv reported.
The Shin Bet and Israel Police “once again warn the citizens and residents of the State of Israel against maintaining improper contacts with foreign entities, assisting terrorist organizations, and carrying out missions on their behalf,” the agencies said in a joint statement.
“The security agencies in the State of Israel will continue to work to identify and thwart terrorist activities carried out by Israeli citizens on behalf of the enemy and in support of terrorist organizations, and will act to bring all those involved to justice to the fullest extent,” they said.
Last week, the National Public Diplomacy Directorate in the Prime Minister’s Office together with the Shin Bet launched a national awareness campaign to fight against the growing phenomenon of Israeli citizens spying for Iran.
More than 35 indictments were served against Israelis over the past year, on the backdrop of the uncovering of more than 25 affairs of Israelis recruited by Tehran to carry out various missions across the Jewish state, according to the PMO’s Directorate.
This prompted the Israeli government to launch the campaign, titled “Easy Money, Hefty Price.”
As part of the campaign, citizens are urged to report any suspicious approach, online or otherwise, to the police.
On July 10, Israeli prosecutors indicted a 27-year-old resident of the central Israeli city of Be’er Ya’akov for alleged espionage on behalf of Iran.
Or Beilin, who was arrested on June 22, stands accused of performing “missions” to harm Israeli national security at the behest of an Iranian handler who went by the name of “Yoni.”
The suspect is said to have received some $9,000 in cryptocurrency from Tehran for spraying political graffiti; buying and burning Israel Defense Forces uniforms; seeking to purchase a drone; and leaving sums of cash in public places throughout the country.
