The Southern District Prosecutor’s Office on Tuesday filed an indictment against Abdullah Gergawi, a 20-year-old resident of a Bedouin town in the Negev, on several charges, including planning a mass terror attack at a nightclub in Be’er Sheva.

Gergawi was arrested in his hometown of Segev Shalom on July 19, 2026, as part of a joint investigation by the Israel Police Southern District Central Unit and the Shin Bet.

The investigation found that Gergawi had been exposed to ISIS content online and as he became increasingly aligned with the group’s ideology, he established contacts with other terror enthusiasts online, including a person who presented himself as a Palestinian terrorist operative. He later contacted an Islamic State member in Syria and expressed interest in traveling to Syria and joining the fighting.

Along with his activity online, Gergawi resolved to carry out a terrorist attack in Be’er Sheva and took steps to prepare explosives and manufacture an explosive device as part of preparations to carry out an attack at the Forum nightclub in Be’er Sheva using a car bomb. He planned to detonate the car bomb remotely while hundreds of people were at the site.

In addition, during March and April 2026, the suspect allegedly possessed an illegal M16-style weapon containing standard firearm components, as well as firearm accessories and ammunition. He also fired the weapon in an open area.

During 2025, the suspect allegedly kept numerous weapons in his home, including a MAG machine gun, a Kalashnikov, a Negev machine gun, an M16, magazines, and ammunition.

He was charged at the Be’er Sheva District Court with charges related to planning an act of terrorism, training for terror purposes, maintaining contact with terrorist elements, and illegally possessing weapons and ammunition.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)