Jordanian national in Florida sentenced to 6 years for targeting businesses he believed supported Israel

“Threatening to commit mass violence against American citizens and targeting businesses or institutions for destruction will not be tolerated,” U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe said in a release announcing Hnaihen’s sentencing. 

By Andrew Lapin, JTA

A Jordanian national living in Florida was sentenced this week to six years in federal prison for attacking a series of businesses, including a solar farm, for their perceived support of Israel, the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement.

Hashem Younis Hashem Hnaihen, 44, had destroyed several solar panels at a facility in Wedgefield in June 2024, causing over $450,000 in damage, and left a letter threatening to use explosives to cause further damage, according to the department.

He was charged after allegedly leaving similar letters at a propane gas distributor in Orlando and, according to local reports, other area businesses, including two Starbucks locations and a McDonald’s, breaking the windows of some of these establishments.

Hnaihen’s letters, which he addressed to the United States president and government, threatened to “destroy or explode everything here in whole America. Especially the companies and factories that support the racist state of Israel.”

He was arrested in 2024 in a combined effort between the FBI, local, and state police.

The Justice Department said Hnaihen was living illegally in Orlando. Court filings in the case described Hnaihen’s solar farm attack as bearing signs of premeditation and sophistication, intended to cause maximum damage to the equipment.

“Threatening to commit mass violence against American citizens and targeting businesses or institutions for destruction will not be tolerated,” U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe said in a release announcing Hnaihen’s sentencing.

Maitland, Florida, where Hnaihen targeted a McDonald’s, is also home to a Jewish community center, Jewish day school, and Conservative synagogue, all located blocks from the site.