DEBKAfile Special Report | January 2, 2011
Mussa Hamadeh and Bassem Al Omry, residents of Jerusalem Arab villages with Israeli citizenship, went on trial before the Jerusalem district court Sunday, Jan. 2 charged with membership of and support for a terrorist organization, arms trafficking and conspiracy to commit a terrorist crime.
Jerusalem's central sports stadium
As active members of the Palestinian Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, they had plotted a series of terrorist attacks in Jerusalem, one of which was rocket fire into the Teddy sports stadium during a Premier League soccer game.
They were arrested by the Shin Bet last November. A gag order was lifted for their trial.
Several accomplices in the Hamas network were involved in purchasing and hiding the weapons. Among them were three members of the British consulate staff. They have since confessed to many firearms offenses in the last two years and were tried on those charges.
Mussa Hamadeh travelled secretly to Saudi Arabia on several occasions to receive instructions from a representative of the Hamas branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and cash for purchasing weapons for attacking Israeli targets. They had bought several pistols, were looking around for a rifle and explosives and scouting out targets when they were apprehended.
The entire group was also found to be deeply involved in recruiting and promoting radical Islamic activity in Jerusalem. Hamadeh and Omry used Hamas funds to subsidize campaigns for attracting and organizing groups of students and visitors to Al Aqsa Mosque and Temple Mount.
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