An Israeli Arab was indicted on Tuesday in Haifa District Court on charges of contact with an enemy agent, incitement to terrorism and identification with a terrorist organization.
According to the indictment served against Ali Abdullah Sarhan, 64, from the village of Nahf, in May 2018 Sarhan joined a WhatsApp messaging group that including 51 people from different countries and was managed by a person calling himself “Assad.” The group traded messages containing content praising Lebanon’s Hezbollah group.
During the period covered by the indictment, Sarhan allegedly read content from the Lebanese TV network Al-Manar, which is identified with Hezbollah, some of which he allegedly copied and shared on his own Facebook page. Sarhan allegedly published items expressing support for Hezbollah and calling on readers to carry out terrorist acts.
Sarhan also allegedly posted a picture to his Facebook account showing Israel Defense Forces’ soldiers near the Lebanese border in which targets were superimposed on the soldiers’ heads.
In another incident, Sarhan allegedly posted a picture that combined the images of Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah and Syrian President Bashar Assad.
The investigation was a joint operation between the Shin Bet security agency and the northern district of the Israel Police’s Central Investigative Unit. Prosecutors are asking that Sarhan remain in remand until the end of legal proceedings.
