He was working in a restaurant in Bat Yam, where he was staying illegally. His brother Nur ad-Din is imprisoned in Israel for security offenses, and he convinced him to commit a ki...
He was working in a restaurant in Bat Yam, where he was staying illegally. His brother Nur ad-Din is imprisoned in Israel for security offenses, and he convinced him to commit a kidnapping in order to get him released from prison.
On September 20, 2013, after repeated persuasions on his part, he managed to convince his work partner Tomer Hazan to accompany him to the Palestinian Authority territories, under the pretext that there was an ancient cache there that needed to be excavated and that Hazan would receive a share of the loot.
He led Tomer Hazan to an abandoned building where they waited together for two hours. Then, in accordance with the agreement made in advance, his brother Salem arrived at the building disguised as a Palestinian policeman. He informed Nidal and Hazan that they were under arrest, and handcuffed them. Nidal told Hazan not to worry, and the two led him to a nearby olive grove.
At this point, Hazan realized that he had fallen into a trap, and promised never to return to the place if he was released.
Nidal smashed Tomer's cell phone and covered his head with a mask. He then strangled him to death with a belt.
At night, the two lowered the body into a well and covered it with dirt and stones.
A few hours later, security forces arrived and the two gave up the location of the body.
He was released on October 13, 2025, after 12 years in prison, as part of the deal to free the living hostages from the Gaza Strip.
According to the terms of the deal, he was permanently expelled from the West Bank.