Prosecutors file new Gaza smuggling indictment as state seeks detention through trial
According to the indictment, the four defendants organized and repeatedly transported trucks loaded with prohibited goods to Gaza outside of the authorized mechanism.
State prosecutors filed an indictment on Sunday against four defendants accused of repeatedly trying to smuggle banned goods from Israel into the Gaza Strip during the war. The new case adds to a growing body of wartime prosecutions over Gaza smuggling, which Israeli authorities say funneled high-value goods into Hamas-controlled territory for huge profits.
According to the indictment, the four defendants – Ayman Danaf, Muhammad Ghrifat, Omar Ghrifat and Ali Ghrifat – organized and repeatedly transported trucks loaded with prohibited goods to Gaza outside of the authorized inspection and transfer mechanism.
Prosecutors alleged the goods included cigarettes, tobacco, cell phones, solar panels, batteries, generators, computers, projectors, electric bicycles and other products, and said the defendants could make millions of shekels per truckload.
Prosecutors also charged the defendants, each according to their alleged role, with attempting to assist the enemy in time of war, attempting prohibited real estate transactions for terrorist purposes and attempted aggravated fraud.
The indictment says they acted for profit while being aware of the possibility that the goods could reach members of Hamas and that this would almost certainly strengthen the enemy economically during the war.
Tobacco seized by the IDF which was smuggled into Gaza. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)
Prosecutors told the court that some of the alleged attempts were foiled when trucks were seized at or near the crossings, but argued that did not deter the defendants, who allegedly continued to try to transport banned goods to Gaza.
The state further said it has strong evidence, including confessions from three of the accused, testimony from other witnesses, such as truck drivers and crossing personnel, and seizures of trucks by security and customs officials.
Details of the indictment
The indictment describes several distinct episodes. In an alleged August 2025 attempt, prosecutors say a defendant organized two trucks carrying large quantities of cigarettes, tobacco and related products and even paid an advance to men who were presented to him as military personnel who were supposed to pass the trucks unchecked; the operation was ultimately thwarted.
In another, prosecutors say thousands of cell phones, millions of cigarettes, hundreds of pounds of tobacco, batteries, solar equipment and vehicle-related items were loaded into two trucks that were then seized near the Kissufim crossing. Another episode from January 2026 involved three trucks transporting cigarettes, generators, batteries, electric vehicles, gas systems, cell phones, SIM cards and other equipment, again allegedly destined for Gaza.
The case also contains a layer of financial crime. Prosecutors alleged that some defendants made substantial illegal profits from broader smuggling activities during 2025, failed to report their income to tax authorities, and misused the profits, leading to additional charges of money laundering and tax deception.
The indictment states that one defendant allegedly won NIS 500,000, another NIS 1.5 million, and a third $1,000.
In seeking detention until trial, the state emphasized both the danger and the risk of flight, arguing that the alleged offenses are security crimes that create legal grounds for detention and that the defendants cannot be trusted with any alternative solutions.
Prosecutors also noted that three of the four people are already linked to another indictment pending in Lod District Court for four additional smuggling operations that allegedly successfully transferred truckloads of banned goods to Gaza.
This is not the first wartime smuggling case to be indicted.
In early February, prosecutors filed a major indictment against 12 defendants in another Gaza smuggling case, alleging that a network of reservists and civilians transported prohibited goods worth millions of shekels — including cigarettes, iPhones, batteries, telecommunications cables and car parts — into the Strip, as part of a project that the state said strengthened Hamas’s economic position.
This earlier case then expanded with the separate indictment of Bezalel Zini, brother of Shin Bet (Israeli Security Agency) chief David Zini, who was charged alongside two other men with aiding the enemy in wartime, prohibiting real estate transactions for terrorist purposes, aggravated fraud and corruption, in a case largely centered on alleged cigarette smuggling during reserve duty inside Gaza.
The new indictment resembles these earlier cases in several respects: Prosecutors again describe the smuggling as systematic rather than opportunistic, again focus on cigarettes and other high-demand goods that Hamas could seize, tax or resell, and again argue that even goods not intrinsically linked to weapons can materially strengthen the enemy by strengthening its economic survival and control inside Gaza.
The new case stands out, however, in that it focuses on a smaller group of four defendants and places heavy emphasis on repeated attempted truck transfers through crossings or neighboring areas, rather than just completed deliveries.
