5 Fatah members charged with terrorist activity in Jerusalem

Julie Wiener

(JTA) — Five Fatah members from eastern Jerusalem were indicted on terrorist activity charges.

The indictments handed down by Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court were announced Monday by Israel’s Shin Bet. They followed a joint investigation by the security service and police into activities such as firebombing and throwing pipe bombs in the A-Tur neighborhood.

According to the Shin Bet, Fatah activist Marwan Khalil, 21, had headed a terror cell in the neighborhood since July and provided funding and weapons to accomplices.

“The investigation revealed that dozens of [Fatah] activists have been involved in the past year, committing acts of violence,” the Shin Bet said in a statement. “It also emerged that the network was operated in an orderly manner, aiming to damage property, Jewish residents and security forces.”

The Shin Bet statement also said that indictments will be handed down against more accomplices in the coming days.