Moshe Feiglin Responds to Extortion Attempt by Bar-Ilan University Lecturer
Moshe Feiglin responded to an indictment against a Bar-Ilan University lecturer accused of planning terror attacks and attempting to extort Feiglin. The lecturer was suspended.
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Moshe Feiglin has spoken out for the first time regarding an unusual extortion case in which he became the target, according to an indictment filed by the State Attorney's Office. The indictment targets a roughly 60-year-old mathematics lecturer at Bar-Ilan University from Petah Tikva, charging him with offenses including preparation for an act of terror, extortion under threats, and obstruction of justice. According to the charges, the lecturer spent years formulating a plan to establish 12 cells comprising 72 operatives to carry out attacks against Arab civilians, and even attempted to recruit Feiglin to advance the scheme.
Discovery of the Extortion Plot
In an interview with Ido Tauber on Channel 14, Feiglin recounted that the approaches from the individual began long before he realized their gravity. "For several years I have been receiving strange letters that I cataloged as just another eccentric person. I did not see it as a danger," he said. According to Feiglin, he eventually stopped reading them altogether: "I didn't even open the letters." The turning point came when another message was handed to his staff while they were on their way to recite Selichot prayers. "They did open it, and it turned out there was an actual extortion attempt to draft me into this bizarre organization."
Feiglin stated that immediately after understanding the letter's contents, a police complaint was filed, leading to the suspect's arrest. According to the indictment, after Feiglin failed to respond to his overtures, the lecturer sent a letter threatening to cause him public damage ahead of the elections if he refused to assist in promoting the plan. Alongside the extortion attempt, Feiglin revealed that he faces other threats as well, noting that he also receives death threats from Arabs, for which he has filed complaints.
University Response and Suspension
According to the indictment filed in the Central District Court, the defendant spent over three years planning a scheme dubbed "Ayit"—an acronym for "A people shall enact a transfer"—under which he sought to execute a series of attacks against hundreds of Arabs. The lecturer's name remains under a gag order. Bar-Ilan University issued a strong condemnation of the allegations.
"Bar-Ilan University denounces and is horrified by the actions attributed to the lecturer in the indictment. The university administration calls on the police and the prosecution to exercise the utmost severity of the law should the allegations prove true. The university shows and will continue to show zero tolerance for such phenomena."
