West Bank Hamas Leader to Be Indicted for Praising Palestinian Who Murdered Israeli Man
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by Benjamin Kerstein
Family and friends attend the funeral of Eliyahu David Kay at a cemetary in Jerusalem November 22, 2021. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
A top Hamas official in the West Bank is set to be indicted for inciting terrorism and membership in a terrorist group after he praised the gunman who killed Eliyahu Kay, a 26-year-old Israeli tour guide, in the Old City of Jerusalem.
Kay, an immigrant from South Africa, was shot dead in November by Fadi Abu Shkhaydam, a 42-year-old Palestinian from eastern Jerusalem who was affiliated with Hamas. Four others were also wounded in the attack.
Shkhaydam was shot and killed by police at the scene.
Prosecutors have since lodged a formal complaint against Hassan Yusuf Khalil, a Hamas leader in the West Bank, in order to procure an indictment against his conduct after the attack, Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported.
While Khalil was not involved in the shooting, he visited the mourning tent erected by Shkhaydam’s family and spoke in praise of the killer and his actions. He also extended condolences to the terrorist’s family from Hamas as a whole.
The military prosecutor is expected to hand down a formal indictment this week.
