Claiming "Planning to Assassinate Ben Gvir".. 11-Year Prison Sentence for a Young Man from Rahat

SadaNews - The Central Court in Beersheba convicted the young man Bilal Nasasra (27 years old) from the city of Rahat in the Negev, sentencing him to 11 and a half years in prison, under a plea bargain, for allegedly planning to form an armed cell and carry out attacks against soldiers and settlers, and to assassinate Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

 

The Israeli prosecution reached a plea agreement with Nasasra, who was described as "the head of the cell that planned to assassinate Ben Gvir," which includes a prison sentence of 11 and a half years, according to an amended indictment. It is noteworthy that the Shin Bet announced in April 2024 the arrest of a cell consisting of five people from Rahat, two from Lod and Wadi Ara, in addition to two from Tulkarm and two from Jenin.

According to the indictment, which is based entirely on the prosecution's claims, Nasasra admitted to the charges against him, which include: "conspiracy and assisting the enemy in wartime, committing acts related to weapons for terrorist purposes, and attempting to use property for terrorist purposes".

The Israeli prosecution alleged that Nasasra began in 2023 trying to form an armed organization, "driven by anger after watching video clips from the Gaza Strip," with the aim of carrying out operations against soldiers and settlers, in coordination with another individual from Tulkarm named Akram Amer.

The indictment stated that the two defendants "planned a multi-stage attack in the settlement of Kiryat Arba, which included detonating explosive devices and opening fire," and that they "discussed assassinating Ben Gvir using an RPG launcher." It was also claimed that they talked about kidnapping settlers from the West Bank and hiding them in tunnels near Tulkarm for the purpose of negotiating a prisoner exchange.

The charges also included alleged plans to carry out operations at Ben Gurion Airport, at the "Rafael" military factory, and at Israeli military bases in the Negev, as well as kidnapping individuals from Galilee, bombings in Haifa, and simultaneous operations during official Israeli occasions, according to the prosecution's claims.

The prosecution acknowledged that the cell "actually did not succeed in executing any of these plans, nor were they able to arm themselves or manufacture devices," and that all attempts to acquire weapons failed.

It is noteworthy that Nasasra is the last defendant in the case, and an agreement was reached through a judicial mediation process, based on which varying sentences were imposed on the other defendants, ranging from 28 months to five and a half years, while Akram Amer was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Commenting on the agreement, Ben Gvir attacked the Israeli judiciary, stating: "The prosecution is negligent of my blood and the blood of government ministers. The sentence of 11.5 years for planning to assassinate a minister using an RPG represents a serious deviation."

He considered that "in any other country, someone who admits to planning to establish an armed organization and carry out killings would be executed or imprisoned for life." He added, "The only consolation is that the policy I lead ensures that he will serve his sentence in a real prison, not in a 'resort'."

Source: Arabs 48