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Israel indicts Arab lawmaker for smuggling phones to prison

Israel indicts Arab lawmaker for smuggling phones to prison | iNFOnews.ca
FILE -- In this Monday, Dec. 26, 2016 file photo, Arab Israeli lawmaker Basel Ghattas waves as he enters a magistrate courtroom in Rishon Lezion. Avichai Mendelblit, Israel's attorney general, said Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017, that he's decided to indict Ghattas for smuggling cellphones to Palestinians in prison serving sentences for security offenses. Mendelblit's office issued a statement that he will charge Ghattas, of the Balad faction, with prohibited use of property for terrorist purposes as well as fraud and breach of trust. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, File)

JERUSALEM – Israel’s attorney general says he’s decided to indict an Arab lawmaker for smuggling cellphones to Palestinians serving prison sentences for security offences.

Avichai Mendelblit’s office said Thursday that he will charge Basel Ghattas with prohibited use of property for terrorist purposes as well as fraud and breach of trust. Ghattas was caught last month smuggling phones to Palestinian prisoners convicted of killing Israelis. Prison officials said they recovered 12 cellphones after his visit. Ghattas denied any wrongdoing.

Ghattas is a member of the Balad faction, a party that has antagonized many Israelis with provocative shows of support for the Palestinians and activism for their cause.

In 2007, Balad lawmaker Azmi Bishara fled Israel while facing charges of spying for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

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