Jerusalem / Anadolu

The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the Israeli State Attorney's Office submitted a request to the Central District Court to revoke the citizenship of two Arab (Palestinian) citizens convicted of security offenses, in a step it described as unprecedented.

The newspaper reported on Wednesday that "the State Attorney's Office submitted an unprecedented request to the Central District Court to revoke the citizenship of two security prisoners at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu."

It added that the request targets Rani Ouf and Shadi Aidi, who were convicted of "conspiring to aid an enemy during war and leaking information to an enemy with intent to harm state security."

It stated that the two men worked for the Israeli telecommunications company Cellcom, and according to the indictment, carried out "a series of actions aimed at implementing a plan to disrupt the company's computer and information systems during a war or military operation, in order to help Hamas."

The newspaper noted that the request to revoke citizenship was submitted at the request of Netanyahu, who also holds the Interior portfolio, and with the approval of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.

Meanwhile, the Times of Israel website reported that Ouf and Aidi were arrested in 2022 and convicted in 2024 on charges of conspiracy and leaking information to the "enemy", and that they passed sensitive information about Cellcom to Hamas, with the aim of harming Israel's communications system.

The website added that the court sentenced Ouf to 11 years in prison, while Aidi was sentenced to five and a half years.

It explained that the State Attorney's Office based its request on an amendment to the Citizenship Law introduced in 2023, which allows revocation of citizenship for those convicted of aiding the "enemy" during war or committing specific security offenses.

An immediate comment from the lawyers of the convicted Palestinians could not be obtained.

Palestinian citizens make up about 20 percent of Israel's population, which numbers over 10 million people.