Israeli police arrest suspect accused of 14 threats against Netanyahu, Haifa station

Israeli police said they arrested a 28-year-old man accused of making 14 threatening calls to emergency services overnight, including claims he was armed and had planted a bomb near Prime Minister Netanyahu's home and would blow up a police station in Haifa. Mahmud Abdulmajid contacted the emergency line on November 12, telling operators a blast would occur in Haifa within ten minutes, police said. Investigators found he had taken a tram from Ar'ara to Haifa, where he allegedly assaulted one passenger, stripped off the passenger's clothes and attacked another before returning to Ar'ara by public transport. He was detained at his home on arrival. Police filed 14 charges against the suspect, including threats, assault, injury and intentional damage to a vehicle. During questioning he refused to speak to a Jewish investigator and requested an Arab one, according to the police account. Nazareth police investigation officer Tayraz Dila said the suspect kept officers busy in two areas and that the threats were taken seriously, prompting an intensive effort to locate him. His lawyer, Avudi Fahum, said he would appeal the detention, arguing his client belonged in rehabilitation rather than prison. The court was not immediately named in the report.