Why is terror-supporting imam leading anti-IDF protests in Israel?

Sheikh Raed Salah is leading protests that slander Israeli soldiers and promote false genocide claims.

By World Israel News Staff

A radical imam who served time in prison for terror-related offenses is leading protests in Israel against the IDF, which include signs falsely alleging that Israeli soldiers are committing genocide in Gaza, a watchdog group warns.

Images circulating on Arabic-language social media channels on Sunday evening showed Sheikh Ra’ed Salah at the forefront of demonstrations accusing the IDF of crimes against humanity in the Strip.

Salah, an Islamic preacher and the leader of the outlawed Northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, stood next to a man holding a sign which called on Israeli troops to “stop murdering women and children.”

The imam has a long history of supporting terror and incitement against the Jewish State and its security forces. In 2003, he was convicted of fundraising for Hamas and served six months in prison.

Salah served additional stints in prison for giving sermons that glorified violence against Jews and Israelis, as well as for assaulting a police officer in Jerusalem.

“Sheikh Ra’ed Salah was convicted of supporting terror. He lead a movement that was banned from operating in Israel during the Second Intifada due to its terror ties,” Maor Tzemach, Chariman of NGO Your Jersualem, told World Israel News.

“But now, he’s the leader of protests against ‘genocide.’ He’s front and center at these demonstrations that accuse Israel of serious human rights violations,” Tzemach continued.

“The sheikh’s presence makes it clear that these aren’t legitimate protests that are part of the discourse in a democratic society,” he added.

Rather, Salah’s participation proves that the demonstrations have a radical Islamic agenda, Tzemach said.

“There can’t be a reality in which a convicted terror supporter is protesting against Israeli soldiers in such an inciteful matter, falsely accusing the IDF of genocide and stirring up hatred during an ongoing war,” Tzemach said.

Tzemach called on the authorities to take steps to end the protests, which he described as “hotbeds of incitement, that directly lead to the creation of new terrorists.”

He also said it was critical for the security agencies to “put a stop to Sheikh Ra’ed Salah’s activities, including by charging him criminally for supporting terror.”