Youssef Albaz, the Imam of Lod, was taken into police custody last night and is being questioned under suspicion of incitement to commit acts of terrorism and violence.
The Regavim Movement filed an official complaint earlier this month, including detailed documentation of Albaz’s inflammatory, racist pronouncements and his explicit calls to his followers to commit acts of terrorism and violence. Last night’s arrest was welcomed by Regavim’s Director General in a statement released early this morning:
“The Regavim Movement applauds the initiation of law enforcement procedures against Youssef Albaz and demands that he be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. The horrific violence to which the Jewish residents of Lod were subjected was fueled by the poisonous, antisemitic hate speech spewed by Imam Albaz, a member of the outlawed Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement. Albaz’s incitement resulted in spilled blood – the lynching murder of Yigal Yehoshua, dozens of wounded citizens and massive damage to private and public property. The time has come to make Albaz pay the price for his incitement. Better late than never.’
