Residents of Omer, an upscale town in southern Israel, are expressing shock and anger after learning that a luxury villa in their community has been sold to relatives of deceased Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh for 6 million shekels ($1.8 million).
The purchase has ignited fierce debate among locals, with many taking to social media to voice their concerns about security and the appropriateness of having the terror leader’s family members as neighbors. The villa, located in the affluent suburb near Beersheba, was sold despite the seller’s knowledge of the buyers’ connection to one of Israel’s most prominent enemies.
Local residents have not held back in expressing their dismay. In community Facebook groups, some have branded the previous homeowner a “traitor,” while others have warned that the sale could potentially endanger the entire town. One particularly vocal resident wrote, “This is what the beginning of the end looks like,” while calling on local council head Erez Badash to take immediate action.
The criticism has been particularly sharp regarding the perceived inaction of local authorities. “There are legal ways to protect our community,” one resident stated, adding “Shame on you!” when addressing the council’s apparent lack of response to the situation.
According to Hebrew-language outlet Walla, the previous owner of the villa acknowledged the sale but defended his decision, characterizing Haniyeh’s relatives as “law-abiding” citizens with no connections to terrorism. He emphasized that the purchasing family members are successful businesspeople who own a local factory, attempting to distance them from their notorious relative’s activities.
Ismail Haniyeh served as the political chief of Hamas until his assassination in Tehran, Iran, in July 2024, in an operation widely attributed to Israel. Throughout his career, Haniyeh was instrumental in orchestrating terror attacks against Israeli civilians and consistently advocated for Israel’s destruction. Under his tenure, Hamas launched the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel.
The situation surrounding Haniyeh’s Israeli relatives is particularly complex and has drawn attention multiple times over recent years. At least three of Haniyeh’s Gaza-born sisters married Israeli Bedouins decades ago, subsequently settling in the Negev Desert and obtaining Israeli citizenship. These women now reside in Tel Sheva, a Bedouin town near Beersheba. Despite living in exile in Doha, Qatar, and leading one of the world’s most recognized terrorist organizations, Haniyeh maintained family connections within Israel itself through his sisters.
It should be noted that Bedouin are Israeli citizens and many serve with distinction in the IDF.
Another male family member serves as a Muslim preacher at a local mosque in Tel Sheva.
In 2014, Haniyeh’s daughter was hospitalized at Tel Aviv’s Ichilov Hospital for “a number of days,” according to a hospital spokesman at the time. The hospital did not disclose her medical condition, but Reuters reported that the treatment followed complications during a standard medical procedure she had undergone in Gaza.
In June 2014, Haniyeh’s 68-year-old mother-in-law was treated in Augusta Victoria Hospital, near Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives.
In November 2013, Haniyeh’s 1-year-old granddaughter received treatment in Israel for an infection in her digestive tract. She was taken to an Israeli hospital in critical condition, but was returned to her family in Gaza after her condition was deemed incurable, an Israeli military spokesman said. The girl later died of her condition.
In February, Channel 13 reported that one of Haniyeh’s nieces gave birth at Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.
The relationship between these family members and Israeli authorities has been troubled. Two of the sisters previously ran afoul of Israeli law by making illegal trips to Gaza in 2013 via Egypt, resulting in eight-month suspended sentences in 2015. That same year, Israel denied Haniyeh’s request for his sisters to attend his son’s wedding in Gaza.
Most notably, in April 2024, one of Haniyeh’s sisters, Sabah al-Salem Haniyeh, was arrested and subsequently indicted for supporting Hamas and celebrating the October 7 massacre. The 57-year-old Israeli citizen was charged with identifying with a terrorist organization and incitement to terrorism after allegedly sending WhatsApp messages praising Hamas’s actions during the attack that killed approximately 1,200 Israelis.
The family’s troubles with Israeli authorities have continued beyond ideological support for terrorism. Recently, another family member of the deceased Hamas leader was arrested in Tel Sheva along with his wife during a major police operation. During the raid, authorities discovered weapons, including a sniper rifle and pistol, various drugs, and approximately 250,000 shekels ($74,500) in cash.
This arrest was part of a broader police operation involving hundreds of officers conducting raids across suspected criminal sites in the region, based on intelligence from an undercover agent who had been working in the area for months.
The local council responsible for Omer has refused to comment on reports regarding the villa sale, leaving residents frustrated with what they perceive as official indifference to their security concerns. The investigation into the family’s various activities remains ongoing, as Israeli authorities continue to monitor potential security threats while balancing the complex reality of having the terrorist leader’s relatives living as Israeli citizens.
The purchase of the luxury villa represents yet another chapter in the ongoing saga of Haniyeh’s family members living within Israel’s borders while maintaining connections to one of the country’s most implacable enemies. For the residents of Omer, the situation serves as an uncomfortable reminder of the complex security challenges facing Israeli communities, even in seemingly peaceful suburban settings.
