Israel’s Attorney General’s Office has officially classified the murder of Israel Prison Service dog handler , 40-year-old Yochai Avni hy”d, as an act of terrorism. The ruling comes after Hamas member Ibrahim Mansur was accused of breaking into Avni’s home in Givon Hachadasha, northwest of Jerusalem, stabbing him 66 times, and setting the house on fire.

The indictment, filed Tuesday morning at the Ofer Military Court, charges Mansur with murder motivated by a nationalist agenda. “The accused did all this due to the fact that the deceased was Jewish, with the intention of causing his death and fleeing the scene,” the Attorney General’s Office stated in its formal indictment.

Avni’s sister, Nitzan, expressed the family’s devastation during the court hearing, saying, “We were informed that the killer stabbed the suspect 66 times in all parts of his body. Meaning he not only murdered him but also abused him. He then burned everything.”

The military court judge reinforced the severity of the charges, confirming that Mansur, a resident of Biddu near Givon Hahadasha, intentionally targeted the settlement because it was inhabited by Jews. “The indictment charges the defendant with the crime of causing death intentionally,” the judge said, approving the military prosecution’s request to detain Mansur until the end of legal proceedings.

Mansur was arrested two days after the brutal July 8 murder, but initial investigations did not immediately conclude terror as the primary motive. However, the latest developments, including the Attorney General’s ruling, have now made it clear that the murder was a terrorist attack with nationalist motivations.

In court, Mansur appeared unfazed, smiling and making victory gestures. His demeanor sparked outrage, but the Avni family, represented by attorney Ran Cohen Rockberger, expressed relief that the case was now recognized as a terror attack.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)