Four Jerusalem Residents Convicted of Security Offenses Linked to Iran

A Jerusalem District Court convicted four residents of Beit Safafa on Wednesday of security offenses committed while carrying out missions for an Iranian-directed operative. The convictions followed guilty pleas as part of a plea bargain.

According to the amended indictment, an Iranian operative contacted another defendant and assigned him tasks for payment, including establishing a terror cell, acquiring weapons, and gathering intelligence aimed at assassinating a nuclear scientist and his family. Mamdoh Khader and Omri Abu Hamida were convicted of failing to prevent an act of terror after they drove to the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot, knowing the mission originated from Iran. After being denied entry, they filmed the entrance and sent the videos to their handler. Abu Hamida later inquired about the filming and was explicitly told the target was someone "the Iranians want to eliminate," yet neither took steps to prevent the assassination attempt.

Mahmoud Khader and Muhammad Taha were convicted of aiding contact with a foreign agent. Mahmoud Khader assisted in spraying graffiti, transporting grenades, and obtaining a fake police license plate to simulate an attack on a police vehicle. Taha initiated and filmed the throwing of a stun grenade at an empty house in the village of Qatana to create the appearance of an attack on a Jewish home, and he hid the phone used to communicate with the Iranian handler.

The prosecution in the case is being handled by Adv. Beni Libskind of the Jerusalem District Prosecutor's Office. Sentencing arguments will be heard at a later date.