Inside The Twisted Scheme To Help A Jailed Palestinian Terrorist Father Twins

A Palestinian prisoner serving a life sentence for his role in the 2001 assassination of an Israeli cabinet minister has reportedly fathered twins after his sperm was allegedly smuggled out of an Israeli prison.

Basel al-Asmar’s wife, Sanabel Al-Ra’i, announced the birth of a boy and a girl at a hospital in Qalqilya, according to Palestinian media reports cited by The Jerusalem Post. The reported birth has also been celebrated by Hamas-affiliated media.

A video shared on Instagram by a Palestinian influencer appears to show Al-Ra’i in a hospital bed with the two newborns. The footage has circulated alongside reports about the alleged sperm-smuggling operation.

Al-Asmar is imprisoned at Nafha Prison in Israel’s Negev region. He is serving a life sentence for his role in the murder of former Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze’evi, who was assassinated at the Hyatt Hotel in Jerusalem on October 17, 2001. Al-Asmar was also convicted of membership in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a Palestinian terrorist organization.

The reported conception was apparently not immediate. According to Al-Asmar’s nephew, who spoke to Palestinian media, attempts to conceive using the allegedly smuggled sperm took place over roughly two years before the pregnancy was successful. 

The couple reportedly met while Al-Ra’i was visiting her brother, Shaher Al-Ra’i, in prison. Her brother was a PFLP member who was suspected of involvement in the killing of two Israeli hikers but was never convicted of those killings, according to the Post. Basel Al-Asmar and Sanabel Al-Ra’i subsequently married by proxy.

The Israel Prison Service has not confirmed that the twins were fathered by Al-Asmar.

In a statement to The Jerusalem Post, the Israel Prison Service said there was no scientific evidence confirming Al-Asmar’s paternity. The service added that such operations are not possible because prisoners have had no contact with the outside world since October 7, 2023.

The prison service specifically linked the timing to the tenure of Commissioner Kobi Yaakobi, saying that prison policy changed after his appointment and that, since October 7, 2023, there has been no contact between prisoners and the outside world that would allow such operations.

According to Indira IVF, sperm can survive for up to an hour in a warm, moist environment when kept in a sterile container. However, the clinic says sperm viability drops quickly when semen is exposed to water or surfaces.

Reports of Palestinian prisoners fathering children through allegedly smuggled sperm date back more than a decade. Over 100 children have been fathered by Palestinian prisoners through sperm smuggling since 2012, according to Palestinian media reports cited by the Jerusalem Post. This includes prisoner Ahmad Shamali, a Palestinian prisoner, claiming he fathered quadruplets in 2023.