Prosecutor Considers Probing Associates of Bar-Ilan Math Professor Accused of Terror Plot

The State Prosecutor's Office is examining the possibility of investigating individuals who met with a Bar-Ilan University mathematics lecturer accused of planning deadly terrorist attacks against Arabs for the past three years. This review follows a request submitted by the Joint List party, through Member of Knesset Ofer Cassif.

The Joint List urged a thorough investigation into the case, specifically focusing on those who met with the accused lecturer. They emphasized the need to ensure strict legal enforcement against anyone aware of his terrorist plot who failed to report it to the authorities as required by law.

According to investigation materials available to the State Prosecutor's Office, a significant number of public figures from security, media, academic, and public policy circles were directly informed of the criminal terrorist plot by the lecturer himself, starting in 2025. These individuals possessed extensive, actual knowledge of its details. Despite this, police did not begin investigating the plot until 2026, by which time the lecturer had made considerable progress in advancing and implementing his plans, even taking practical steps on the ground.

It is inferred that some individuals the lecturer contacted were aware he was planning bloody terrorist acts and had information that apparently raised genuine suspicions about his capability to carry them out, yet they did not report him to law enforcement. This situation raises fundamental questions about criminal liability for failing to prevent a terrorist act and failing to prevent a crime.

The Joint List stressed the necessity of completing the investigation to uncover all circumstances of the case, examine the responsibility of anyone suspected of knowing about the plot or failing to report it, and ensure the law is applied firmly and equally, without exception or discrimination.