Special to WorldTribune.com

JERUSALEM — Israel has sought to stop the recruitment of Arab citizens to fight in Syria.

Officials have cited recruitment of Sunni Muslims by Al Qaida to fight the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The officials said the Israeli Arabs were trained by Al Qaida and turned into experienced fighters who could threaten the Jewish state.

“The phenomenon is small, but we are so close to Syria that this could tempt young people to join Al Qaida,” an official said.

On May 14, the Israel Security Agency reported the arrest of an Arab suspected of fighting for Al Qaida. ISA said Ahmed Hiri Shurbaji, 23, joined Al Qaida’s Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and fought in Syria.

“During questioning, Shurbaji confessed to traveling to Syria in order to take part in the struggle against the Syrian Army,” ISA said.

ISA said Shurbaji, who allegedly saw combat near the Syrian border with
Iraq, was trained in heavy machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers
and hand-to-hand combat. The intelligence agency did not say when Shurbaji
fought in Syria or when he returned to Israel.

Officials said both ISIL and Nusra Front for the Defense of the Levant
were seeking to recruit Israeli Arabs. They said the recruits could be
assigned to form sleeper or operational cells to attack the Jewish state.

“These terrorist networks already have a presence in every country in
the region, and Israel is clearly the next target,” the official said.

  ISIL, Israel concerned that Arab citizens recruited for Syria will get Al Qaida training, Israel Security Agency, Nusra Front