#beit lakia

- In the wake of the bus attack, the Shin Bet and Israeli police claim to have arrested members of a Beit Lakia-based 'cell'. (JPost)

- In an effort to quell several rumors (or starting more of our own for that matter), its important to note that the primary suspect is male, which contradicts initial reports that claimed the bomber was female.

- Both the suspect's lawyer, Ihab Galgoly, and the Tel Aviv police have publicly stated that an indictment will be presented on Wednesday. Moreover, it's important to note that Galgoly has not yet been given the opportunity to review the evidence against his client. (JPost)

- According to Shin Bet reports, the accused is suspected of being the one who placed the bomb on the bus, before notifying the head of the cell, who then detonated it by phone. (JPost)

- The suspect, whose name is still being kept out of the news, originally hailed from a village near Ramallah called Beit Lakia; however, according to the Shin Bet, he was able to move within the Green Line to Taibeh after marrying an Arab woman with Israeli citizenship. Because of a law that enables PA residents to attain citizenship to strengthen family unification, he gained Israeli citizenship by marrying said woman (her name has also been kept out of the media). (Israel National News)

- The suspect appeared to be quite young, and smiled to his family before the closed-door hearing began. (JPost)

- The Shin Bet claims that the cell's members identified with Hamas and Islamic Jihad and decided to carry out the bombing as a response to the IDF's Operation Pillar of Defense. (JPost). 

What We Don't Know:

- Who is the man behind the blurred Photoshop edits and who did he work for?

- Initial reports about the bus attack made claims that there were two perpetrators - where is the second suspect? Furthermore - is the man pictured above actually one of the two aforementioned persons or is this a clear case of pomp and stance?

- How legitimate is the Shin Bet claim that the Beit Lakia cell identified' with Hamas and Islamic Jihad? What does it actually mean to identify with an organization? Does it mean that the Beit Lakia 'cell', which has not been identified as anything more than a cell, is linked to a terrorist organization? a political organization? a civil society organization? Oh right, we have no freakin' clue.......

- Why hasn't the suspect's lawyer been allowed to review the evidence against his client? I'm no legal expert, in fact I'm quite far from one; however, this point seems to be a bit troubling for those of us who advocate for free and just judicial systems.

- On a more systematic level, and this is more of a question for any of our readers who may know the answer (because I sure as shit do not) - where is the distinction to be made between the activities of the Shin Bet and the Israeli police in this investigation? I have been operating under the general assumption that the Shin Bet supersedes the authority of the Israeli police, particularly when it comes to national security, yet I continue to read articles that handcuff together the two institutions in their investigation about the November 21 bus bombing.

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