Ten members of two Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror cells with ties to Iran and Hezbollah were arrested in the West Bank by Israeli security forces, the Shin Bet security agency confirmed on Tuesday.
According to the Shin Bet, the cells had planned a series of terror attacks on Israeli targets, including a major attack on the northern Israeli town of Harish, located near the West Bank, and the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier to use as a bargaining chip for freeing Palestinian prisoners.
The security agency further specified that the cells had received extensive funding and training from both Iran and its Lebanese proxy group, Hezbollah. One of the cell leaders, Yazan Abu Salah, was soon set to travel to Lebanon to receive “military training” at the time of his arrest. This would have included “learning how to shoot, create weapons, operate drones and more”, the Shin Bet said.
It was also established that the PFLP terror cells were jointly managed by a Lebanese resident, Assad Al-Amali, who “works fully on behalf of Iranian officials in Syria” and is believed to be responsible for connecting the cells directly to both Iranian agents and Hezbollah.
One of the terror cells, which had disguised itself as a civilian welfare organisation calling itself “Al-Shabab Al-Alumi Al-Arabi”, was also reportedly trained by the Iran-aligned Syrian army.
