Ex-Soroka doctor jailed for ISIS membership after collecting explosives, poison manuals

The Beersheba Magistrate’s Court sentenced a former Soroka Medical Center doctor to 27 months in prison on Sunday for membership in ISIS, finding that his pledge of allegiance and years of collecting the terrorist organization’s material went beyond ideological interest to developing practical capabilities.

Dr. Muhammad Azzam was also fined NIS 15,000 and given a 12-month suspended sentence. Prosecutors said his details had been referred to the Health Ministry for consideration of revoking his medical license.

Judge Shoshana Shitrit ordered that time already spent in custody be deducted from the prison term. Azzam, who spent more than 17 months in detention before being placed under electronic monitoring, must report to Dekel Prison on November 8.

The sentence follows his conviction on April 27 after a contested trial. The conviction was for membership in a terrorist organization; the judgment does not establish that he attacked or harmed patients.

According to the court’s findings, Azzam regularly consumed ISIS propaganda from 2014 until his arrest on July 16, 2024, watching footage of battles, executions, and beheadings and sometimes sharing material with others.

After the October 7 Hamas-led massacre attack and the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza War, he pledged allegiance to the organization’s leader. The court found that his conduct became more extreme afterward, including downloading practical manuals on explosives and poisons while working at Soroka in 2024.

Investigators found material systematically arranged in folders on his electronic devices, some protected by passwords. Shitrit concluded that the collection and organization of operational guides reflected deliberate learning and preparation for possible future use, rather than curiosity.

The judgment also cited exchanges in which Azzam expressed delight at the October 7 atrocities and shared footage of them. In another conversation, concerning wounded soldiers brought to Soroka, he expressed a wish that one of the soldiers would die.

Shitrit treated his work as a doctor as an aggravating factor, citing his direct access to vulnerable civilians and wounded soldiers. Her assessment concerned the potential danger arising from that position, rather than a finding that he had used it to injure anyone.

The defense argued that Azzam’s membership was entirely passive and that he had taken no practical step toward an attack. His lawyers said he had neither purchased materials for terrorism nor planned to travel abroad to join the organization, and had no intention of harming anyone.

A central issue at trial was whether an oath recited privately, without direct personal or digital contact with an ISIS representative, could establish membership. According to the sentencing judgment, by closing arguments the defense had abandoned its factual denials and focused on that legal question.

The court convicted him, finding that the oath, considered alongside his sustained identification with ISIS and the evidence on his devices, established membership.

Prosecutors sought a deterrent prison sentence, emphasizing the prolonged radicalization, his decision to join during wartime and his failure to accept responsibility.

In mitigation, the defense described difficult detention conditions and the impact on his wife and two young daughters. Azzam told the court he wanted to move forward and rebuild his family life.

Shitrit gave weight to his lack of previous convictions, his family circumstances and the difficult conditions of his detention, placing the sentence toward the lower end of the range she considered appropriate.

The suspended sentence will apply if he commits specified terrorism or state-security offenses within three years of his release. He was informed of his right to appeal.