Arab Israeli man charged with incitement to terror

An Arab Israeli man was indicted on Tuesday for incitement and expressing support for the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah.

Ali bin Adbullah Sarhan, a 64-year-old resident of the northern town of Nahf, was a member of a group on the WhatsApp messaging application called “Shabkat al-Ghaliboun” (Network of the Victors), whose users shared pro-Hezbollah content, according to an indictment filed at the Haifa District Court.

In addition to sharing some of the content on his Facebook account, the indictment said Sarhan also sent messages in the WhatsApp group expressing support for Hezbollah and calling for attacks on Israeli soldiers.

Prosecutors allege one such message shared by Sarhan includes photos of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Syrian President Bashar Assad next to an image of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, on which was written, “I’m Palestinian and my commander is Bashar Hafez Assad. Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine.”

Sarhan is being charged with incitement to terror, contact with a foreign agent, and identifying with a terror group.

Prosecutors asked the court to keep Sarhan, arrested on December 10, in custody until the end of legal proceedings.