Israeli Arab indicted on charges of supporting ISIS

Nazareth resident believed to have sent money to fellow terrorist

The Shin Bet security agency announced on Monday the indictment of an Arab citizen on charges of supporting and of having contact with operatives of the Islamic State terrorist group.

The charges were filed by the Northern District Prosecutor’s Office in the Nazareth District Court against 25-year-old Nazareth resident Fadil Tzaber Kna’anah.

According to the Shin Bet, Kna’anah was arrested on March 2 for being in contact with two other Israeli Arabs who were fighting with ISIS, including his brother, Muhammad, who left to join the group in Syria in 2014 and died fighting for it.

During the investigation it was revealed that Kna’anah was in contact with his brother until his death as well as with another Arab citizen, Muhammad Kilani, who is currently fighting with the group. Kilani is reported to have told Kna’anah about the death of his brother in 2016 as well as about the wounds he sustained while participating in a battle for Islamic State.

Kilani requested Kna’anah’s assistance to transfer funds from Israel to Iraq with the help of a foreign currency trader in the West Bank city of Jenin in March 2017, and according to the statement released by the Shin Bet, Kna’anah transferred NIS 5,000 as requested, despite knowing that Kilani was fighting with the terrorist group, even calling him to make sure he received the money.

The Shin Bet sees “the connections of Israeli civilians with terrorist elements as a highly dangerous phenomenon which constitutes a serious security threat to the State of Israel and to the safety of its citizens,” the agency’s statement read.

“The transfer of funds to foreign terrorist operatives can promote terrorist activity and therefore the Shin Bet will continue to use every means at its disposal in order to thwart this threat in advance and to bring those involved in this activity to justice.”