A prosecutor’s statement was filed against 31-year-old Hamad Ali, originally from the village of Silwad, near Ramallah. He is suspected of carrying out a car ramming attack in Tel Aviv on December 8.
The incident was first reported as a traffic accident between a private car and a motorcycle on Abarbanel Street, in which the motorcycle driver was hit and sustained moderate injuries. During the investigation, it became clear that the incident was a targeted attack.
Suspicion grew in the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) that the motive for the incident was nationalistic, and the investigation was transferred to a joint operation by Shin Bet and a special unit of the Israel Police.
Ali finally admitted that he had decided to carry out the attack as revenge for the death of his cousin, who was killed in a firefight with Israeli security forces in the West Bank the previous day.
Illegal entry
The suspect entered Israel illegally without a driver’s license, driving a discarded Israeli car that had been transferred to the West Bank with fake license plates. He was arrested after the incident on suspicion of involvement in an accident and illegal residency in Israel.
At the end of the investigation, the police filed a statement against Ali and asked the court to prolong his detention.