Israel Police and Shin Bet intelligence agents have arrested two Israeli Arab men who were planning terrorist attacks against civilians and IDF soldiers.
The two security forces said in a joint statement on Thursday that the two wannabe terrorists, ages 18-21, are residents of the Israeli Arab towns of Qalansawe and Zemer, both located in the “Triangle” area of northern Israel.
The agencies said the Central District Office has filed a declaration of intent to prosecute the suspects. Indictments against both suspects are to be filed sometime Thursday.
The two suspects expressed support for the Hamas terrorist organization in the wake of the group’s October 7, 2023, invasion and massacre in southern Israel.
They planned to attack an Israeli military facility and carry out a “car-ramming and shooting attack targeting IDF soldiers or civilians,” according to the statement.
One of the suspects “acquired materials to produce Molotov cocktails (firebombs) and carried out experiments aimed at manufacturing explosives” for an attack on a bus transporting IDF soldiers, the statement added.
Domestic Terror Numbers Rising
According to Shin Bet data, Israeli Arabs carried out 14 “significant” terror attacks within pre-1967 Israel last year. Of those, five attacks were carried out by Israeli Bedouins from the Negev.
Between 2023 and 2024, there were 82 terror attacks within the so-called “Green Line”, from Katzrin in the north to Be’er Sheva in the south. Many of those attacks were carried out in Tel Aviv and surrounds.
Those figures, however, constitute a fraction of the number of attacks prevented by Israeli forces.
In 2024, Shin Bet agents prevented 1,040 planned terror attacks in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem – about the same as the 1,032 attacks foiled in 2023, but more than double the 472 prevented attacks in 2022.
The 2024 Shin Bet report also notes that out of the 1,040 planned attacks, 689 used firearms, 326 involved explosive devices, 13 were intended stabbings, nine were car-ramming attacks, two were suicide attacks, and one was an attempted kidnapping.
Despite Israel’s efforts, however, 46 Israelis and foreign nationals were killed and 337 were wounded by terror attacks in 2024.
“Iran has markedly intensified its operations within Israeli territory, a trend reflected in the Shin Bet’s report,” warned Joe Truzman, senior research analyst and editor of the Foundation for Defense of Democracy (FDD)’s Long War Journal.
“Alarmingly, Iran has achieved some success in recruiting Israeli citizens to execute various tasks on its behalf.
“Alongside these efforts, Iran is actively working to destabilize the West Bank by smuggling arms into the territory, which further underscores its commitment to orchestrating acts of violence against Israel,” Truzman said.
