Contractor Charged with Possessing 51 kg of Drugs on Philadelphi Route
Southern District prosecutors have indicted Muhannad Abu Yahya, a 25-year-old contractor from Rahat, after he was caught on the Philadelphi Route in Gaza with 40 kg of hashish and 11 kg of Captagon pills.
Arrest on the Philadelphi Route
The Southern District Attorney's Office has filed an indictment with the Beersheba District Court against Muhannad Abu Yahya (25) from Rahat. Abu Yahya, an infrastructure contractor working at military posts in the "yellow zone" of the Gaza Strip, was arrested on the Philadelphi Route in late July by central district police investigators.
According to the indictment, Abu Yahya was caught in possession of approximately 40 kilograms of hashish and tens of thousands of Captagon pills weighing about 11 kilograms. Investigators also seized 98 new mobile phones from him, though these were not included in the final indictment.
A police representative stated during a detention hearing:
"He was observed by security forces acting suspiciously. As soon as forces approached him, he was caught red-handed smuggling a very large quantity of various drugs and cellular phones. The smuggling route linked Gaza, Egypt, and Israel. The entire Philadelphi Route is within the territory controlled by the State of Israel."
The Indictment and Defense Claims
According to the charges, Abu Yahya left his assigned military post in the "yellow zone" without authorization or security escort, driving to the Philadelphi Route in the southern Gaza Strip. He loaded jerrycans containing the hidden drugs into his vehicle from the roadside.
IDF soldiers spotted him driving suspiciously from Israeli territory into the Gaza Strip. During the drive, he stopped and threw one of the jerrycans to the side of the road, at which point an IDF force arrived and detained him.
The prosecution ultimately charged him only with possession of a dangerous drug not for personal consumption, as investigators could not gather sufficient evidence to prove drug trafficking within the Gaza Strip.
During interrogation, Abu Yahya claimed he collected the jerrycans believing they contained diesel fuel and stopped only to drink water. He claimed that when the IDF force arrived and fired warning shots into the air, he panicked and threw one of the jerrycans away.
Prosecution Seeks Detention Until End of Proceedings
Prosecutor Wassim Abu Amar filed a request to detain Abu Yahya until the end of legal proceedings, noting:
"His actions demonstrate his involvement in the criminal world, given his access to such a large quantity of various drugs. The audacity of committing drug offenses in a combat zone, while exploiting his status and access to this area, significantly increases his dangerousness."
