Greek Anti-Terrorist Office charge 39-year-old Egyptian for inciting jihad, supporting Hamas’ armed wing

The Greek Anti-Terrorism Service charged a 39-year-old Egyptian man for inciting acts of violence and jihad with his social media posts relating to the Israel-Gaza War. The case file for the migrant was submitted to the Prosecutor’s Office of Chania.

The Egyptian, who has been in Greece for ten years, praised the Al-Qassam Brigades terrorist organisation, which is a branch of Hamas, and called the Muslims to Jihad.

The Al Qassam Brigades were established in 1992 and, according to CIA Factbook estimates for 2023, number at least 20,000 fighters.

Their name comes from the Syrian preacher Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, who, at the beginning of the 20th century, called for armed resistance against the “new crusaders” of colonialism and, in 1935, was killed in an exchange of fire with the British police.

The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades is currently mainly supported by Iran, which Hamas does not deny either.

The Brigades are based in the tunnel systems of Gaza, which are often used for targeted attacks, such as the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2006, who returned to his family after five years after being exchanged with 1027 Palestinian prisoners.

In 2014, the Al-Qassam Brigades had even organised a sea attack on the city of Ashkelon, which was repelled by Israeli forces.

In 2020, Israel’s Ministry of Justice announced that it had managed to block Bitcoin donations to Hamas. Shortly before, the US Treasury had published names of suspects in the transfer of money from the “Revolutionary Guards” (the elite of the Iranian armed forces) to the Al-Qassam Brigades through Hamas.

A key role in the transactions, according to the Americans, was played by a bank in Lebanon, which is linked to the pro-Iranian organisation Hezbollah.

READ MORE: FM Gerapetritis outlines six principles in Greek-Turkish relations.