4 Palestinians face charges over ISIS ties, plans for ‘great war of the end of days’

Four residents of East Jerusalem’s Beit Safafa neighborhood, allegedly affiliated with the Islamic State jihadist movement, are set to be charged for planning attacks against Jewish Israelis, the Shin Bet security agency and Israel Police announce.

The four Palestinians, all in their 20s, were detained recently by police officers over suspicions they were affiliated with the Islamic State.

The Shin Bet says that during their interrogations, it emerged that the four “support the ideology of the Islamic State, consumed large amounts of the organization’s content online, including gruesome materials and execution videos.”

“Influenced by the organization’s content, they planned to purchase military equipment, weapons, and arms to prepare for what they call ‘the great war of the end of days’ against Jews,” the agency says.

According to the Shin Bet, the suspects began acquiring military equipment, with one managing to purchase a pistol, which was later seized. The Shin Bet quotes the suspect as saying during his interrogation: “I will use the pistol against Jews or anyone who is not a Muslim.”

Indictments against two of the suspects are expected to be filed in the coming days, while the investigation of the other pair is ongoing, the agency says. All four are currently being held.