Israeli Government Seeks to Intensify Anti-Terror Enforcement
by JNS.org
JNS.org – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a special session on Wednesday to discuss the growing threat to Israel posed by radical Mideast terror organizations such as the Islamic State, Israel Hayom reported.
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch, Shin Bet security agency Director Yoram Cohen, Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino, and Attorney-General Yehuda Weinstein participated in the meeting, which focused on the need to intensify the counterterrorism measures taken by Israel’s law enforcement agencies.
Livni is pushing a new bill to bar Israeli citizens and residents from participating in any activity related to organizations that have been designated by Israel as terrorist groups.
As part of the bill, the defense minister will release an administrative order listing designated terrorist organizations, as well as the areas and countries in which they are known to operate. Israelis would be barred from having any contact with these groups—in or outside Israel.
Israeli citizens or residents found to be affiliated with such groups may face up to three years in jail. The government’s legislation efforts are the result of Israeli intelligence information indicating that several Israeli Arabs have recently joined rebel forces in Syria.