Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of Hamas founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef, arrived in
Israel Wednesday evening from the US.
Despite receiving an official
invitation to visit the Knesset from Deputy Minister Ayoub Kara (Likud), Yousef
was delayed at passport control for more than two hours of questioning before
being allowed to proceed.
“They questioned me for a long time but they
treated me well and with respect,” said Yousef regarding his detainment at
Ben-Gurion Airport.
Yousef, who served as his father’s right-hand man,
worked as an undercover agent for the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) from
1997 until 2007 and was considered the most valuable spy within Hamas during the
second intifada.
In his capacity as a source for the Shin Bet, Yousef
prevented dozens of terrorist attacks and planned assassinations against Israeli
leaders. He further assisted in exposing Hamas terrorist cells and provided
intelligence that led to the detention of key Palestinian leaders – including
his own father. In 2007, Yousef, who is a convert to Christianity, quit being an
agent and moved to the US where he received political asylum.
Yousef’s
autobiography, Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political
Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices, was published in 2010.
In it, he
describes how he came to despise the use of brutality in Hamas and what caused
him to switch sides.