Beersheba terror suspect admits wanting to 'blow up' nightclub dancers

Abdullah Gergawi, 20, indicted for allegedly plotting a terrorist attack near the Forum nightclub in Beersheba, told investigators he intended to target the dancers inside the venue. "I wanted to blow up the people dancing there, whether they were Jews or Arabs," he stated.

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I wanted to blow up the people dancing there, whether they were Jews or Arabs.

Gergawi, from Shaqib al-Salam, faces charges including contact with a foreign agent, providing services to a terrorist organization, preparing for a terrorist act, and undergoing terrorist training. During interrogation, he admitted to searching YouTube for instructions on making explosives and collecting materials such as agricultural lime, sulfur from matches, and charcoal.

Investigators found that Gergawi had been consuming ISIS-related content on social media since 2022, eventually supporting and identifying with the terrorist organization. He connected with ISIS supporters and joined a Signal messaging group where jihad and developments in Israel were discussed.

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A video appeared for me about how to make an explosive filling. The video said that I needed agricultural lime, sulfur, and charcoal. I found lime in my storage room because I have an uncle who works in Jenin. I took a cup of lime from the sack, and took from it an amount of 75 grams of lime, charcoal, and sulfur.

Before his arrest, Gergawi urged group members to take action when he learned the group was expected to shut down. He was advised to be patient and await contact. After the group disbanded, he deleted Signal from his phone to erase any traces of his involvement.

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I want to say that before I took the sulfur from the matches, I went to Dahariya and Bani Naim and looked there for sulfur to use in preparing the explosive material, but I did not find any because they did not agree to sell it to me and some told me they did not have any, so after I returned home I decided to take the sulfur from the matches.