Six terrorists from Shechem (Nablus) were arrested recently in a joint ISA and police operation, on suspicion of involvement in widescale terror operations.
The investigation revealed that the terror cell planned to carry out shooting attacks and place explosive devices in Judea and Samaria, and that they received instructions and significant funding directly from the Hamas commanders in Turkey.
The suspects' interrogation revealed that members of the cell received tens of thousands of dollars from their operators in Turkey - funds that were intended for use in carrying out attacks against Israeli security forces and civilians, as well as additional targets in the area.
When three of the suspects were arrested at the end of January, they were found to be in possession of an M-16 and approximately $40,000 in cash. A second suspect who was arrested in the same operation led the forces to a sum of $20,000. Three more suspects were arrested later on, who were also involved in the cell's operations. All of the suspects were taken for an in-depth interrogation by the ISA and police.
During the interrogation, using information from one of the suspects, Israeli security forces discovered a powerful explosive device placed near Jit in Samaria. The device had wires and was buried in a large package of metal, which also contained explosive material. It was removed from the scene using engineering equipment, and destroyed in a controlled fashion by police sappers.
The interrogation led to fully uncovering the terror infrastructure, including connections between cell members and the Hamas terror group's representatives abroad, as well as the methods which were used to transfer the funds for the activities.
Evidence collected throughout the investigation allowed both the attacks to be successfully thwarted and the legal proceedings against them to continue.
Last week, Prosecutor's statements were filed against all of the suspects arrested, and their arrests were extended until the completion of legal proceedings against them.