State files first-ever citizenship revocation request against two ex-Cellcom workers convicted of planning Hamas cyber attack

At the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and with the approval of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the State Prosecutor's Office filed a precedent-setting motion to revoke the citizenship of Rani Uf and Shadi Aidi, former Cellcom employees convicted of assisting Hamas. According to the filing, the two passed sensitive information on the company's communication infrastructure and planned to disable the Cellcom network during a wartime or military operation. The request describes their actions as 'acts of treason' and argues the extreme breach of trust justifies revocation.

The State Prosecutor's Office has submitted a precedent-setting motion to revoke the citizenship of two security prisoners, Rani Uf and Shadi Aidi, who were convicted of planning a cyber attack for Hamas. The request, filed at the behest of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and with the approval of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, is the first of its kind under the criminal track of the Citizenship Law.

According to the filing, Aidi and Uf, both former employees of the telecommunications company Cellcom, passed sensitive information on the company's communication infrastructure to Hamas operatives. Prosecutors say they also planned to disable the Cellcom network during a future war or military operation, an act described as 'treason' in the request.

The Zioneer first reported on the filing at 11:03 Jerusalem time, citing the same details. The case marks a new legal avenue in Israel's efforts to counter security threats from within, leveraging the Citizenship Law to strip citizenship from those convicted of severe breaches of trust.

4 developments

1. 2 hours ago · 12:25 · 22 JulLatest

   PM Netanyahu requested and AG Baharav-Miara approved the citizenship revocation.

2. 11:27 · 22 Jul

   Report identifies the prisoners as former Cellcom workers planning cyber attacks.

3. 11:09 · 22 Jul

   Identified as former Cellcom employees Rani Uf and Shadi Aidi.

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