East Jerusalem Man Arrested for Threatening to Kill Israeli MK Tzvi Sukkot

Israeli police arrested a 25-year-old man from East Jerusalem on Thursday for allegedly threatening to kill Tzvi Sukkot, chairman of the Knesset Education Committee. The suspect, Tarzan Hammad, reportedly sent threatening messages and images of weapons and ammunition to Sukkot via Facebook. Among the threats, Hammad wrote, "I always have a weapon, I travel without security checks, I will kill you when I see you." Following the threats, police launched an investigation, detained the suspect, and took testimony from Sukkot.

In response, the Knesset and Israeli police held a security assessment and decided to raise the threat level against Sukkot to level 4, increasing his security detail and tightening protective measures. Sukkot's office stated the threats followed his recent visits to Arab sector schools as part of his parliamentary work and his efforts against extortion practices. Several threatening messages, including weapon images, had been received recently.

Sukkot praised the police for their swift action and emphasized that the threats would not deter him from his public duties. He highlighted the serious threat posed by violence, crime, and illegal weapons accumulation in the Arab sector to Israeli civilian security and vowed to continue combating these issues. "Anyone who thinks threats will silence me is mistaken," he said.