Who Is Fadi Al-Qanbar? Cabinet Adopts Administrative Detention For ISIS Sympathizers After Fatal Jerusalem Truck Attack

The Israeli Cabinet approved administrative detentions for Islamic State group sympathizers Sunday in the way of a deadly truck attack that left four Israeli soldiers, three women and one man, dead and 17 others injured.

An alleged ISIS sympathizer drove a flat-bed truck into a group of conscripts getting off a bus in Jerusalem Sunday afternoon. Authorities labeled the deaths of Lt. Yael Yekutiel, 20, Shir Hajaj, 20, Shira Tzur, 20, and Erez Averbuch, 20, a mass casualty event. Two other cadets were seriously injured, the Israeli army said.

The attacker was identified as Fadi al-Qanbar of East Jerusalem, who was shot to death by security personnel.

“We know the identity of the attacker, and according to all the signs, he is a supporter of Islamic State,” Netanyahu said.

He said the attacker likely was inspired by recent truck attacks in Europe.

In addition to approving administrative detention for ISIS sympathizers, the Cabinet ordered the attacker’s home destroyed and rejected family reunification requests filed for relatives in Gaza and the West Bank, the Jerusalem Post reported. Ministers also decided against handing over al-Qanbar’s body for burial.

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman rejected the notion the incident was incited by the presence of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, saying it was the mere fact that Jews live in Israel.

The United Nations has denounced Israel’s use of administrative detention, calling it “egregious.” Administrative detention has been used to keep Palestinians in prison after having served their sentences. It involves a judicial proceeding in which a judge examines classified evidence. There is no trial.

Israel currently is holding 46 ISIS-associated prisoners, about 0.1 percent of all prisoners and 0.3 percent of “security” prisoners, those associated with such groups as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, +972 reported. Some of the ISIS-related prisoners are said to have fought in Syria or were captured en route.