Mervat Sadeq - Ramallah
The Israeli Shin Bet security service announced on Saturday evening that it had arrested a Palestinian cell belonging to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), accusing it of planting an explosive device on August 23 in the Ein Bobin area, west of Ramallah in the West Bank. .
A statement by the Shin Bet said that in a joint operation between the Israeli army and the police, they arrested the Palestinians who planted the device in Ein Bobin, near Deir Abzei village, west of Ramallah.
The Israeli statement claimed that the perpetrators, from the Ramallah area, belonged to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and "planned other operations."
Four accused
The Israeli intelligence service published the names of four Palestinians from Ramallah, including the Taliban from Birzeit University, all of whom were arrested in a massive campaign launched by the Israeli occupation forces in recent weeks against dozens of people in the area.
Among those accused of "cell" Samer Mina al-Arbeed, 44, a resident of Ramallah, a former prisoner released in 2013, and accused him of activism in the Popular Front.
On Thursday morning, Israeli forces kidnapped al-Arbeed from Ramallah before storming his house, destroying its contents and confiscating unknown documents. His wife was arrested and released hours later.
According to Al-Dameer Prisoner and Human Rights, Al-Arbeed was taken to an Israeli hospital in a serious and fractured health condition throughout his body as a result of being tortured at the Al-Maskobiya Interrogation Center in Jerusalem.
He accused the Arab occupation of working under the command of the Popular Front leader in Ramallah during the second intifada, and responsible for the preparation of explosive devices, and carrying out bombings during the pursuit by the occupation forces for several years.
The Israeli intelligence statement said Arbeed was the leader of the cell and attended the IED planted in Ein Popin, and detonated it when he noticed that the settler family had arrived in the area.
Qassam al-Barghouthi, 25, a resident of Kober village northwest of Ramallah, is also a former prisoner and accused of helping to prepare and detonate the device.
Barghouti's house has been subjected to a series of raids since his arrest on 26 August.
His father, Abdul Karim Barghouti, was summoned to investigate Ofer detention center. He told Al-Jazeera Net that his two sons and his wife were interrogated in simultaneous and long tours of Ofer prison without being allowed to meet each other.
Mother Barghouti was released on September 16 on high financial bail and on condition that she be deported outside the PA's control and banned from posting on social media after she was accused of "inciting against Israel." Her eldest son, Carmel, is still being held and is under investigation in the Jerusalem District.
In a statement announcing the cell, the occupation also named Yazan Maghames, a 25-year-old student, who was arrested from his home in Ramallah on the 11th of this month. The occupation said that Mghamis was arrested previously for his activities in the Popular Front.
The Israeli occupation forces arrested several days ago the mother of Maghamis. The prisoners' information center stated that her arrest was part of a campaign of summons for the families of prisoners, and aimed at pressuring them during the investigation at Al-Maskobia Center.
The occupation statement, the fourth "cell members", a computer engineering student at Birzeit University, also mentions Nizam Umtair, 21, who was arrested last weekend from his university residence.
The statement said members of the cell led by Samer al-Arbeed had planned other attacks, including shootings and kidnappings.
The occupation announced the discovery of another explosive device he said belonged to members of the cell while storming the village of Kober west of Ramallah last week. Their interrogation was continuing.
Following the Ein Popin operation, the Israeli occupation forces have launched a campaign of arrests of Birzeit University students in recent weeks, which reached 18 students in the past two months, according to the Right to Education Campaign.
Palestinian factions, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), praised the bombing in Ain Boubain in August, calling it "quality."