Who was the Islamic ‘scholar’ who carried out the Jerusalem attack?

KHALED ABU TOAME

What is clear is that he was affiliated with Hamas and regularly expressed views similar to those of the Gaza-based group.

The site of a shooting attack in the Old City of Jerusalem on November 21, 2021. / (photo credit: POLICE SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)

Those who knew Sheikh Fadi Abu Shkhaydam were not surprised to hear that he was the terrorist who carried out the shooting attack in the Old City of Jerusalem on Sunday morning.

Described by his friends and acquaintances as an “Islamic scholar,” the 42-year-old Abu Shkhaydam was a well-known mosque preacher in east Jerusalem mosques, including the al-Aqsa Mosque. Others referred to him as a “senior Hamas official in Jerusalem.”

It was not clear whether he held an official position with Hamas. What is clear is that he was affiliated with Hamas and regularly expressed views similar to those of the Gaza-based group.

Abu Shkhaydam was known for his daily presence at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, where he used to deliver sermons and lead protests against tours by Jewish groups.

He was not, however, affiliated with the Jordanian-controlled Waqf Department, which administers the Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem.

In addition, he was known as a prominent and influential figure in Shu’fat Refugee Camp, where he helped solve disputes between local families and individuals.

Abu Shkhaydam, a father of five, was born in Shu’fat Refugee Camp, the only camp located within the boundaries of the Jerusalem Municipality. The camp is run by the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), although it is located under Israeli sovereignty.

Most of the original residents of the camp, located between Jerusalem’s French Hill and Pisgat Ze’ev neighborhoods, came from the Old City of Jerusalem before the 1967 Six Day War.

The residents of the camp, including the Abu Shkhaydam family, hold Israeli-issued ID cards in their capacity as permanent residents of Jerusalem. Permanent residents of Israel are entitled to all the rights of an Israeli citizen, except for voting in the general elections.

They are nevertheless entitled to vote and present their candidacy in the municipal elections, but most Arab residents of Jerusalem have been boycotting the municipal elections since 1968 on the pretext that participation in the vote would be seen as recognition of Israel’s decision to annex east Jerusalem.

Abu Shkhaydam’s friends referred to him as a “mourabit” (garrison soldier or defender of a faith) because of his activities to prevent Jews from visiting the Temple Mount.

It is believed that more than 1000 men and women have been recruited by various Islamic groups to “defend” the al-Aqsa Mosque against alleged attempts by Israel to “change the status quo” by allocating prayer space for Jews at the Temple Mount.

In 2015, Israel outlawed the mourabitoun (plural for male mourabit) and mourabitat (plural for female mourabita).

Despite the ban, dozens of men and women, including Abu Shkhaydam, continued to arrive at the Temple Mount almost every day to harass and shout at Jews who enter the area under police protection.

“Sheikh Fadi was a permanent mourabit at the al-Aqsa Mosque,” said his uncle, Shibli Sweiti. “He studied sharia (Islamic religious law) and was working on his PhD. He was an educator at the mosque and taught sharia in some of Jerusalem’s schools.”

Abu Shkhaydam worked as a teacher of Islamic Education at al-Rashidiya Secondary School across the street from Herod’s Gate. The school operates under the supervision of the Jerusalem Municipality.

In videos that surfaced on social media platforms after the terrorist attack, Abu Shkhaydam is seen chanting slogans at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in which he pledges to defend the site from any “aggression.” In other videos, he is seen praising Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons and urging Muslims to fight against their “oppressors.”

In a recent sermon during Friday prayers, Abu Shkhaydam lashed out at the Arab countries and heads of state, dubbing them “prostitutes” because of their alleged “collusion” with Israel and “betrayal” of the Palestinians.

Israeli Defense Minister’s House Cleaner Charged With Espionage for Iran-Linked Hacker Group

Sharon Wrobel

Israel’s Minister of Defense Benny Gantz arrives for the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, June 27, 2021. Maya Alleruzzo/Pool via REUTERS

An Israeli ex-bank robber who was employed as a cleaner and handyman in Defense Minister Benny Gantz’s private home, has been charged with espionage after allegedly attempting to sell information to Iranian-linked hackers.

Omri Goren was arrested earlier this month by the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) — also known as the Shin Bet — and the Israeli police just days after it was found that he allegedly used a social network to contact an Iran-linked hacking group. The suspect has been working in Gantz’s home for about two years despite his criminal record.

Goren has in the past been convicted five times for a number of offenses, including bank robbery, theft and burglary, according to Israeli media reports. He has served four prison sentences, the last of which was for four years.

According to the Shin Bet investigation, Goren offered his spy services to the Iran-linked hacking group noting that he had direct access to Gantz’s home. Goren is understood to have taken photographs of several items in various places around the minister’s home, including one of his computer, which he sent to the Iran-linked group to support his intentions.

The 37-year-old Israeli citizen was arrested as he was planning to assist the Iran-linked hacking group with installing a malware program on Gantz’s computer. According to the indictment filing, Goren used the Telegram service to contract the Iran-affiliated hacking group Black Shadow — the same entity that last month carried out cyberattacks on Israeli civilian websites.

“It should be emphasized that given the measures and procedures used to secure information at the minister’s home, Goren was never exposed to classified materials and no such material was transferred to the agents with whom he was in contact,” the Shin Bet said in a statement. “The rapid counter-operation by ISA thwarted the intention of the accused which could have harmed the security of the state.”

Following the findings of the investigation, a Central District state attorney filed an indictment against Goren on charges of espionage in the Lod District Court.

In light of the incident, the security agency said, it would launch “investigation regarding the background check in order to prevent the possibility of a recurrence of such incidents.”

Egypt and Israel: Past, present, future – opinion

JONATHAN FELDSTEIN

Today, Israel’s relations with Egypt are warmer than they have ever been.

EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT Anwar Sadat meets with prime minister Menachem Begin in 1977 when Sadat made his historic visit to Jerusalem.
(photo credit: REUTERS)

Growing up in a university town, I was exposed to a wide range of cultures. As visiting faculty and graduate students came and went, there was a constant revolving door of people passing through. At the end of elementary school, a new student arrived in my class, her name was Nahla, and she was from Egypt.

As a son of an Israeli father, I will never forget the discomfort that I felt being around her. I had nothing against her personally, and in fact recall resisting liking her. I understood from my much earlier years that Israel and Egypt were enemies, and that they sought the destruction of Israel. As nice as Nahla may have been, and that maybe she only associated me with being a Jew and not an Israeli, it was innate not to trust her.

Whatever brought Nahla and her family to town, just like many of the other international students, she was there for a few years and then she left. But she left around the same time that my perspective on Egypt began to change.

I will never forget the chilly autumn day in 1977 as I sat with my father watching the most historic thing about which, until that point, I had awareness related to Israel’s survival. It was November 19.

The quickly planned visit of Egyptian president Anwar Sadat, the first Arab leader to visit Israel publicly, was incredibly exciting, and scary at the same time.
INTOXICATING DAYS: Egyptian president Anwar Sadat and prime minister Menachem Begin clasp hands with US president Jimmy Carter after the landmark ‘Framework for Peace in the Middle East’ was signed on the White House lawn. (credit: MOSHE MILNER / GPO)

I was in middle school and certainly did not understand the range of geopolitical factors that had been taking place since the early 1970s, ultimately leading to this point. To me, Egypt was still an enemy, and as much as I sat there with enthusiastic optimism that maybe we’d have peace, I was terribly afraid that the Egyptian plane door would open, and terrorists would emerge, firing weapons at all of Israel’s leadership gathered on the tarmac.

Thank God, after what felt like endless anticipation, all that emerged was a smiling president Sadat. Less than two years later, Israel and Egypt signed an unprecedented peace treaty; good for Israel and Egypt together. Two years after that, Sadat was assassinated by Islamic extremists on the anniversary of the Yom Kippur War. By making peace with Israel, he made enemies across the Arab and Islamic world.

Sadly, for a variety of reasons, for decades Israel’s peace with Egypt has been one of practicality and mutual interests, but primarily on a government to government, or military to military basis. Many Israelis have visited Egypt, but the reverse has not been the case. While there were aspects of reconciliation, specifically between soldiers who had battled one another in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, for the most part peace did not trickle down to civilians. Nevertheless, even a cold peace is better than any kind of war.

It was important that Egypt recognized that, as well as recognizing Israel’s existence, and was right to do so. It would be 40 years (not an insignificant period biblically vis a vis the Jewish people’s Exodus from Egypt), before the ice broke further, and the Abraham Accords paved the way for peace with four new Arab countries (in addition to Jordan which made peace in 1994). Perhaps, just like the two generations it took for the Jewish people to leave Egypt and return as free people to the Land of Israel, two generations were also needed before Arab nations would feel free to follow what president Sadat started.

Almost 25 years to the day after Sadat’s assassination, I had the privilege of meeting and befriending an Egyptian diplomat stationed in Israel. We spoke openly about a range of topics, challenging one another from our different perspectives, but in friendship. In another unprecedented move, he became the first Arab diplomat to visit my Judean mountain community, pejoratively referred to as a “West Bank settlement.” Sometimes, ice thawing is not all bad, or blamed on global warming.

Today, Israel’s relations with Egypt are warmer than they have ever been. This comes after a tense period during the thankfully short-lived regime of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood’s president Mohamed Morsi. While there’s still a lack of peace between people, and still very much at the practical governmental and security level, relations have rebounded and even improved.

Albeit on a different level because he’s not the first, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, seems to be improving on the playbook of president Sadat. This is in part because the Middle East has become more polarized with Islamic extremists challenging the more moderate nations. It is also clear that Israel is not only not an obstacle to peace, but a critical pillar of it. This was explained by my friend, the Egyptian diplomat, because Israel and Egypt in fact have the same enemies.

Maybe it’s just coincidence, but as then-president Sadat arrived in Israel, the future and current President Sisi was celebrating his birthday, the former paving a path for the latter. It seems that Sisi knows who the bad guys are: Iran and its puppets, Turkey, Qatar, etc.

For Jews and Israelis, Egypt is an inseparable part of our consciousness. It’s not just the wars we’ve fought, or the annual celebration of the Exodus at Passover. Our biblical history in and with Egypt goes back to Abraham, Joseph, and hundreds of years of enslavement, placing Egypt on our radar regularly. Even when we observe Shabbat each week, we include a blessing over wine, reminding us of our exodus from Egypt.

It’s good to be out of Egypt, free people in our land, and recognized by the largest Arab nation as an anchor and role model for others. I pray that the peace will warm and expand further, and that every November 19 we will have the privilege to look back on that historic day in 1977, from decades of respective peace and prosperity.

The writer is the president of the Genesis 123 Foundation, building bridges among Christians with Israel. He resides in Efrat.

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