Israel warns freed terror chief Zubeidi: ‘One mistake and you’re going to meet old friends’

Zakaria Zubeidi, 49, a Palestinian prisoner and former a top commander in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades who was released by Israel, January 30, 2025. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
Zakaria Zubeidi, 49, a Palestinian prisoner and former a top commander in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades who was released by Israel, January 30, 2025. (AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

In a tweet, Defense Minister Israel Katz threatens the recently released Palestinian prisoner and former terror chief Zakaria Zubeidi, warning that “one mistake and you’re going to meet old friends.”

“We will not accept support for terrorism,” Katz writes, after Zubeidi was freed on Thursday in exchange for Israeli hostages held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.

On Friday, following an Israeli warning, Palestinian officials canceled a large planned celebration in Ramallah for Zubeidi, who organized dozens of attacks during the Second Intifada while heading the al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigades in Jenin.

Officers from the Civil Administration “conveyed unequivocal messages, according to which, the IDF will show zero tolerance towards the planned event and asserted that if there is a gathering in honor of Zubeidi, it will be dispersed quickly and aggressively,” Israeli defense sources say.

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