A large IDF force, in cooperation with the Shin Bet, raided the offices of the Al Quds television channel, which had been declared a terrorist organization. Four Arabs were arrested on the scene and much of the equipment was confiscated, as well as vehicles.
The forces, from the Binyamin and Efraim regional divisions, also raided the Hamas student cell, which incites terror in the universities in Hebron. Many of the cell’s incitement materials were confiscated and warnings were issued to the families of students who take part in incitement to terrorism.
The four Al Quds TV detainees are journalists suspected of incitement to violence over the television channel: Alaa Rimawi, Mohammed Alwan, Qutaiba Hamdan, and Husni Abdul Jalil Anjas.
Al-Quds TV, established in November 2008, broadcasts via the Arab satellites Nilesat and Arabsat. The station is Hamas’s second satellite TV channel, after Al-Aqsa TV. It is licensed in London, with offices in the Gaza Strip, Ramallah, Beirut and Damascus. According to the Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, Al Quds is a mouthpiece of Hamas. The New York Times and the Associated Press describes Al-Qud TV as “pro-Hamas.” In November 2012, during Operation Pillar of Cloud, Israel bombarded the office of the Al-Quds TV station in Gaza, injuring three.
In the course of the night, IDF forces, the Shin Bet and the Border Police arrested 20 wanted Arabs suspected of involvement in terrorist activities and violent disturbances in Judea and Samaria. Violent riots broke out in three locations during the arrests, and the security forces in the area were forced to respond by means of riot control.
Five Hamas terrorists were arrested in Qalqilya on suspicion of inciting to terrorist activity on behalf of the terrorist organization.
The IDF Spokesperson stated that “the security forces will continue to act against incitement in order to prevent terrorism and to protect the security of the residents.”