Wife of Palestinian Prisoner Involved in Assassination of Israeli Minister Gives Birth to Twins Using Smuggled Sperm

Sanabel Al-Ra'i, wife of Palestinian prisoner Basel Al-Asmar, who is serving 45 years for his role in the 2001 assassination of former Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze'evi, gave birth to twins on Saturday in Qalqilya, West Bank. The pregnancy was achieved through artificial insemination using sperm smuggled out of prison and frozen, a process that took over two years and several attempts before succeeding.

Al-Ra'i, a former nurse, expressed mixed emotions at the birth, feeling joy for her children but pain that her husband remains incarcerated and cannot be with her. The couple married in 2022 via power of attorney, with Al-Asmar's brother signing the marriage documents on his behalf. Their relationship began during prison visits when Al-Ra'i came to see her brother, who was also imprisoned in Israel.

Basel Al-Asmar was convicted as the secondary assassin in the killing of Ze'evi, who was murdered by a Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine cell in retaliation for the Israeli killing of the group's leader Abu Ali Mustafa. Al-Asmar's role was to secure the assassination and shoot Ze'evi's bodyguards if they intervened. He was arrested in 2002 and is serving a life sentence plus 20 years.

The case highlights a broader phenomenon reported by Palestinian sources, where prisoners serving long sentences smuggle sperm out of Israeli prisons to father children. According to family members, Al-Asmar's sperm was smuggled out about two years ago and frozen. An Israeli security source confirmed the smuggling occurred before October 7, 2023, but said that since then, prison service policies have changed, ending the meetings that previously allowed such transfers or prisoner family reunifications.