Israeli Police Confiscate Money, Cars of Released Prisoners Karim, Maher Younes

Released prisoner Maher Younes with his relatives. (EPA)
Released prisoner Maher Younes with his relatives. (EPA)
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Israeli Police Confiscate Money, Cars of Released Prisoners Karim, Maher Younes

Released prisoner Maher Younes with his relatives. (EPA)
Released prisoner Maher Younes with his relatives. (EPA)

An Israeli police unit raided the family home of the two freed prisoners, Karim and Maher Younes, and seized money worth about $150,000 and a car belonging to the family.

The police said they carried out this operation on the orders of Minister Yoav Galant, who claimed that the two prisoners received the money and the vehicle from the financial allocations transferred to them by the Palestinian Authority (PA).

A source close to Galant stated that the order came on the recommendation of the economic anti-terrorism authority in the Ministry of Defense, claiming that new financial allocations had arrived from the PA.

A Younes family source asserted that the money and the vehicles were the family's property, explaining they were allocated to the two prisoners as a gift to facilitate their lives and compensate for their long years of captivity.

He described the Israeli seizure as a "robbery" in line with the series of repressive measures implemented by Israeli authorities against Palestinian prisoners and their families.

Israeli authorities released Karim earlier this month and Maher last week after spending nearly 40 years in Israeli prisons.

Israel was angered by the warm reception the brothers received upon their release.

Israeli had authorities carried out several raids against the family's homes and interrogated several family members, including women.

On Monday, police forces raided Karim's house and detaining two of his relatives for investigation. They also confiscated banners and pictures the family had hung up for the celebrations.

The Israeli government has started enacting a law - tailored with the two prisoners in mind - that aims to deport any citizen convicted of terrorism after serving their sentence and if they had received a salary or allowances from the PA.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir had declared he would not rest until Karim and Maher Younes were expelled to Syria.

Minister of the Interior Aryeh Deri had submitted a request to the judicial adviser to the government to deport Younis' relatives.

Karim was elected a member of Fatah's Central Committee while he was in captivity, and given his position, he receives allocations for his political activity.

Israeli intelligence is trying to push him to leave his homeland or move to the West Bank.



Israel Shocks Lebanon with Plan to Link Withdrawal to Normalization

Israeli soldiers patrol near the Israel-Lebanon border, in Israel, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Avi Ohayon
Israeli soldiers patrol near the Israel-Lebanon border, in Israel, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Avi Ohayon
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Israel Shocks Lebanon with Plan to Link Withdrawal to Normalization

Israeli soldiers patrol near the Israel-Lebanon border, in Israel, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Avi Ohayon
Israeli soldiers patrol near the Israel-Lebanon border, in Israel, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Avi Ohayon

Lebanon’s government and public were caught off guard by Israeli leaks suggesting a potential deal that would link Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanese territory and the demarcation of land borders to a normalization agreement between Beirut and Tel Aviv.

However, Lebanon firmly rejects the idea, stressing that border talks are strictly security-focused, limited to Israel’s withdrawal, border delineation, and the release of detainees.

The leaks, attributed to an Israeli political source, emerged a day after Israel released four Lebanese detainees in what it described as a “goodwill gesture.” The development coincided with preparations for negotiations on disputed border points.

Israeli media quoted a political source as saying that talks with Lebanon are part of a broader, comprehensive plan.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies have reshaped the Middle East, and Israel wants to maintain this momentum to achieve normalization with Lebanon, the source said.

Just as Lebanon has demands regarding the border, Israel has its own demands as well, and these issues will be discussed, the source further stated.

The remarks were seen as an Israeli attempt to link border demarcation and withdrawal from Lebanese territory to a normalization agreement, according to a Lebanese lawmaker following the developments.

However, Lebanon firmly rejects any such linkage, considering it an overreach beyond the mandate of the committee overseeing the implementation of the ceasefire agreement that took effect on November 26.

A senior Lebanese official told Asharq Al-Awsat that the idea of linking border discussions to normalization with Israel is “not on the table for Lebanon.”

The official emphasized that the mandate of the five-nation committee, formed after the recent conflict, is “security-focused, not political,” and is strictly limited to implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701.

The official explained that the committee's role is “confined to overseeing Israel’s withdrawal from five remaining occupied border points, demarcating the 13 disputed border areas, and securing the release of Lebanese detainees held by Israel.”

While the remarks were attributed to an unnamed source rather than an official spokesperson, they caught Lebanese officials off guard.

Diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry had not been informed of any such proposal and that no international official had raised the issue so far.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun met on Tuesday with US General Jasper Jeffers, head of the ceasefire monitoring committee, alongside US Ambassador Lisa Johnson, ahead of a committee meeting in Naqoura.

According to the Lebanese presidency, Aoun urged the committee chief to pressure Israel to implement the agreement, withdraw from the five occupied hills, and release Lebanese detainees.