Two indictments were issued against suspects accused of being part of a smuggling operation transporting goods into the Gaza Strip, the State Attorney's Office announced on Wednesday.
The accused are believed to have been responsible for smuggling millions of shekels' worth of goods into Gaza for Hamas, both while the Gaza war was still ongoing and after the ceasefire began.
The main items smuggled into Gaza were cigarettes and tobacco; other items included cellphones, vehicle parts, batteries, and communication cables.
Shin Bet Chief's brother suspect in Gaza smuggling case
Bezalel Zini, the brother of Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) Chief David Zini, has been named as a suspect in the smuggling case, though he has not been indicted so far. Zini specifically is suspected of smuggling cigarettes into the enclave.
As of now, the police, the Shin Bet, and the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division are handling two separate significant smuggling cases into Gaza.
In recent weeks, Southern Command, under Maj. Gen. Yaniv Asor, and the Gaza Division 143, under Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, has led a move to tighten supervision of movement at crossings between Israel and Gaza, in an effort to prevent further smuggling.
Sarah Ben-Nun and Avi Ashkenazi contributed to this report.