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	==External links==		==External links==
	~~{{Portal\|Palestine\|Biography}}~~
	*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140201181623/http://www.sonofhamas.com/ Archived copy of defunct official website of the book (February 1, 2014)]		*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140201181623/http://www.sonofhamas.com/ Archived copy of defunct official website of the book (February 1, 2014)]
	*[http://www.jihadica.com/mosab-hassan-yousef-receives-death-sentence-from-the-global-islamic-media-front/ al-Qaida's reaction] to Mosab's [[Apostasy in Islam\|Apostasy]] (August 2008)		*[http://www.jihadica.com/mosab-hassan-yousef-receives-death-sentence-from-the-global-islamic-media-front/ al-Qaida's reaction] to Mosab's [[Apostasy in Islam\|Apostasy]] (August 2008)

->Rlink2: /* Views and controversies */Fixing archives for YouTube videos (WP:Link_Rot, WP:CEFC#Pre-emptive_archiving, phab:T294880)

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Views and controversies: Fixing archives for YouTube videos (WP:Link_Rot, WP:CEFC#Pre-emptive_archiving, phab:T294880)

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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{short description|Palestinian human rights activist and author}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Mosab Hassan Yousef
| image = Mosab Hassan Yousef (2).jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Yousef at the 2019 Budapest Summit on Migration
| birth_name = Mosab Hassan Yousef<ref name=h24/><ref name=dt08/>
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1978|5|5}}<ref name=dt08/>
| birth_place = [[Ramallah]], [[Palestinian territories]]<ref name=dt08/>
| other_names = Joseph;<ref name=dt08/> "The Green Prince"
| known_for = Covert defection to [[Israel]] in 1997,<ref name=h24/> and [[Conversion to Christianity|conversion]] from [[Islam]] to [[Christianity]]<ref name=dt08/>
| parents = [[Sheikh Hassan Yousef]] (father)<ref name=h24/>
}}

'''Mosab Hassan Yousef''' ({{lang-ar|مصعب حسن يوسف}}; nicknamed "'''The Green Prince'''"; born 5 May 1978)<ref name="az">{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/Mosab-Hassan-Yousef/e/B002VPW2BM/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0|title=Mosab Hassan Yousef Biography|publisher=Amazon.com|access-date=14 March 2010}}</ref> is a [[Palestinian people|Palestinian]] who worked undercover for Israel's internal security service [[Shin Bet]] from 1997 to 2007.

Shin Bet considered him its most valuable source within the [[Hamas]] leadership. The information Yousef supplied prevented dozens of [[suicide attacks]] and assassinations of Israelis, exposed numerous Hamas cells, and assisted Israel in hunting down many militants, and incarcerating his own father, Hamas leader [[Sheikh]] [[Hassan Yousef (Hamas leader)|Hassan Yousef]].<ref name="h24" /><ref name="msnbc.msn.com">{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/35651699 |title=Hamas leader disowns son - World news - Mideast/N. Africa - Israel-Palestinians | NBC News |publisher=NBC News |date=3 January 2010 |access-date=23 April 2013}}</ref> In March 2010, he published his autobiography titled ''Son of Hamas''.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6qqwLB05IocC&q=Son+of+Hamas:+A+Gripping+Account+of+Terror,+Betrayal,+Political+Intrigue,+and+Unthinkable+Choices |title=Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue ... - Mosab Hassan Yousef - Google Books |access-date=23 April 2013|isbn=9781414340821 |date=2 March 2010 |last1=Yousef |first1=Mosab Hassan }}</ref>

In 1999, Yousef [[Conversion to Christianity|converted to Christianity]], and in 2007 he moved to the United States.<ref name="dt08" /> His request for political asylum in the United States was granted pending a routine background check in 2010.<ref name="asylum-granted" />

==Biography==
Mosab Hassan Yousef (later Joseph)<ref name="dt08">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/palestinianauthority/2613399/Mosab-Hassan-Yousef-son-of-Hamas-leader-becomes-a-Christian.html|title=Mosab Hassan Yousef, son of Hamas leader, becomes a Christian |last= Elsworth |first=Catherine |author2=Carolynne Wheeler|date=24 August 2008|newspaper=Daily Telegraph|access-date=7 March 2010 |location=London}}</ref> was born in [[Ramallah]], a city {{convert|10|km|mi|sp=us}} north of [[Jerusalem]]. His father, [[Sheikh Hassan Yousef]], was a [[Hamas]] leader who spent many years in Israeli prisons.<ref name="dt08" /><ref name="az" /><ref name="wsj">{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703915204575103481069258868|title=They Need to Be Liberated From Their God'; The 'Son of Hamas' author on his conversion to Christianity, spying for Israel, and shaming his family. |last=Kaminski |first=Matthew |date=5 March 2010 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=7 March 2010}}</ref> He is the oldest of five brothers and three sisters.<ref name="dt08" /><ref name="soh">{{cite web |url=http://sonofhamas.com/book/ |title=Son of Hamas|access-date=14 March 2010}}</ref>

When Yousef was growing up, he wanted to be a fighter because that was according to him what was expected of Palestinian children in the [[West Bank]].<ref name="cnn-transcript">{{cite news |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1003/02/ampr.01.html|title=An Israeli-Hamas Double Agent Speaks about Career in Intelligence|date=2 March 2010|publisher=CNN|access-date=14 March 2010}}</ref> Yousef was first arrested when he was ten, during the [[First Intifada]], for throwing rocks at [[Israeli settlers]].<ref name="cnn-transcript" /> He was further arrested and jailed by Israel numerous times.<ref name="az" /> As his father's eldest son, he was seen as his heir apparent,<ref name="dt08" /> and became an important part of the Hamas organization.<ref name="az" />

Yousef said he saw the light after a stint with his dad’s comrades in an Israeli jail during the mid-1990s. At Megiddo Prison, he witnessed Hamas inmates leading a brutal year-long campaign to weed out supposed Israeli collaborators. "During that time, Hamas tortured and killed hundreds of prisoners,” he said, recalling vivid memories of needles being inserted under finger nails and bodies charred with burning plastics. Many, if not all, had nothing to do with Israeli intelligence. “I will never forget their screams,” he continued. “I started asking myself a question. What if Hamas succeeded in destroying Israel and building a state. Will they destroy our people in this way?” <ref>= name New York Post https://nypost.com/2021/05/22/hamas-founders-son-israel-should-kill-leaders-after-ceasefire/</ref>

Yousef's doubts about [[Islam]] and Hamas began forming when he realized Hamas' brutality, and that he hated how Hamas used the lives of suffering civilians and children to achieve its goals.<ref name="dt08" /> Yousef was held by [[Shin Bet]] agents in 1996. While in prison, he was shocked by Shin Bet's interrogation methods, which he considered humane, when compared to how Hamas operatives tortured imprisoned suspected collaborators.<ref>{{cite news |author=Christiane Amanpour |date=2 March 2010 |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1003/02/ampr.01.html | publisher=CNN | title=An Israeli-Hamas Double Agent Speaks about Career in Intelligence |access-date=28 July 2010}}</ref> He decided to accept a Shin Bet offer to become an informant.<ref>{{cite web |author=Gonen ben Yitzhak |author2=Mosab Hassan Yousef |date=30 June 2010 |url=http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/07/10/the-heart-of-the-matter/ |title=Why Deport a Friend to Middle East Peace? |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref>

==Espionage career==
Beginning with his release from prison in 1997, Yousef was considered the Shin Bet's most reliable source in the Hamas leadership, earning himself the nickname "The Green Prince" – using the color of the [[Islamist]] group's flag, and "prince" because of his pedigree as the son of one of the movement's founders. The intelligence he supplied to Israel led to the exposure of many Hamas cells, as well as the prevention of dozens of [[suicide bombing]]s and assassination attempts on Jews. He has claimed that he did not inform for money, but rather that his motivations were ideological and religious, and that he only wanted to save lives.<ref name="dt">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/7332932/I-saved-Shimon-Peres-from-plot-says-son-of-Hamas-founder.html|title='I saved Shimon Peres from plot' says son of Hamas founder|last=Sherwell|first=Philip |author2=Nick Allen |date=27 February 2010|newspaper=Daily Telegraph|access-date=7 March 2010|location=London}}</ref> In order to thwart any suspicions of collaboration, the Shin Bet staged an arrest attempt, telling the [[Israel Defense Forces]] to launch an operation to arrest him, and then provided him intelligence allowing him to escape at the last minute, after which he went into hiding for the rest of his career.

Yousef says he supplied intelligence only on the condition that the "targets" would not be killed, but arrested. This led to the detention of several key Palestinian leaders, including Ibrahim Hamid, a Hamas commander in the West Bank, and [[Marwan Barghouti]]. Also, Yousef claims to have thwarted a 2001 plot to assassinate [[Shimon Peres]], then [[Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel|foreign minister]] and later [[President of Israel]]. According to his former Shin Bet officer, "Many people owe him their lives and don't even know it."<ref name="dt"/>

==Conversion to Christianity==
According to his story, Yousef met a British missionary in 1999 who introduced him to Christianity.<ref name="dt08" /> Between the years 1999 and 2000, Yousef gradually embraced Christianity. In 2005, he was secretly [[baptize]]d in [[Tel Aviv]] by an unidentified Christian tourist. He left the West Bank for the United States in 2007, and lived some time in [[San Diego]], [[California]], where he joined the Barabbas Road Church.<ref name="dt08" />

In August 2008, Yousef publicly revealed his Christianity, and renounced Hamas and the Arab leadership, thereby endangering himself and exposing his family in Ramallah to persecution.<ref name="dt08" /> Yousef has also claimed that his aim was to bring peace to the Middle East; he hopes to return to his homeland when there is peace.<ref name="dt08" />

Yousef has stated that despite his [[Conversion to Christianity|conversion to Christianity]], he is "against religion", and does not adhere to any [[Christian denomination|denomination]] of Christianity. He has stated, "Religion steals freedom, kills creativity, turns us into slaves and against one another. Yes, I am talking about Christianity as well as Islam. Most Christians I have seen, seem to have missed the point, that Jesus redeemed us from religion. Religion is nothing but man's attempts to get back to God. Whether it is Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, animism, any ism. Religion can't save mankind. Only Jesus could save mankind through his death and resurrection. And Jesus is the only way to God."<ref>{{cite web |author=Mosab Hassan Yousef |url=http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/1246151-let-s-get-to-know-each-other-let-s-talk |title=Let's get to know each other, let's talk . . . |publisher=Goodreads |date=13 May 2011 |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref>

==Autobiography==
Yousef's co-authored autobiography, ''Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices'', written with the assistance of Ron Brackin, was published in March 2010.<ref name="h24">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/haaretz-exclusive-hamas-founder-s-son-worked-for-shin-bet-for-years-1.266204 |title=Haaretz exclusive: Hamas founder's son worked for Shin Bet for years |last=Issacharoff|first=Avi|date=24 February 2010|newspaper=Haaretz|access-date=28 July 2014 }}</ref><ref name="h-harel">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/when-palestinians-keep-israelis-safe-1.266192 |title=When Palestinians keep Israelis safe |last=Harel |first=Amos |date=24 February 2010 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref>

Yousef's brother Ouwais denounced the report about his brother's activities, saying: "It was full of lies; it's all lies." Ouwais also revealed that the last contact between his family and Mosab took place more than a year before the news of his spying.<ref name="cnn">{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/02/24/israel.hamas.informant/|title=Report: Hamas founder's son worked for Israel|last=Flower|first=Kevin|date=3 March 2010|publisher=CNN|access-date=7 March 2010}}</ref> Sheikh Hassan Yousef, Mosab's father, while in an Israeli prison, disowned his son for spying for Israel.<ref name="msnbc.msn.com"/> The ''[[Haaretz]]'' report on Yousef was described by Hamas MP Mushir al-Masri as "psychological war being waged against the Palestinian people... [it] did not deserve a response".<ref name=cnn/>

==Deportation threats and political asylum==
For a time, Yousef was threatened with [[deportation]] from the U.S., after his request for [[Asylum in the United States|political asylum]] was denied, since statements in his book about working for Hamas were interpreted as "[[Providing material support for terrorism|providing material support]] to a [[U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations|U.S.-designated terrorist organization]]", despite Yousef's explanation that they were "intended to undermine the group". His case then proceeded to the deportation stage, despite Yousef's advocates' warning that he would likely be executed by the [[Palestinian Authority]] if deported to the [[West Bank]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Leila |first=Hilary |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?ID=179493 |title=Israel informant risks deportation |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=25 June 2010 |access-date=23 April 2013}}</ref>

On 24 June 2010, Shin Bet handler [[Gonen Ben Itzhak]], who for 10 years worked with Yousef under the [[cryptonym]] "Loai", revealed his own identity in order to testify on behalf of Yousef at an immigration hearing in [[San Diego]]. Ben-Yitzhak described Yousef as a "true friend", and said, "he risked his life every day in order to prevent violence".<ref>{{cite web |author=Mosab Hassan Yousef |url=http://sonofhamas.wordpress.com/2010/05/14/shin-bet-handler-confirms-son-of-hamas-account/ |title=Shin Bet "handler" confirms Son of Hamas account! |date=14 May 2010 |publisher=Son of Hamas |access-date=23 April 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Issacharoff |first=Avi |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/haaretz-exclusive-hamas-founder-s-son-worked-for-shin-bet-for-years-1.266204 |title=Haaretz exclusive: Hamas founder's son worked for Shin Bet for years |newspaper=Haaretz |date=24 February 2010 |access-date=23 April 2013}}</ref>

Partially as a result of this, [[Executive Office for Immigration Review|Immigration Court]] Judge Richard J. Bartolomei, Jr., ruled on 30 June 2010, that Yousef would be allowed to remain in the United States after being fingerprinted and passing a routine background check.<ref name="asylum-granted">{{cite news |url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/jun/30/hamas-founders-son-granted-asylum-san-diego/|title='Son of Hamas' wins asylum fight|last=Darcé|first=Keith|date=30 June 2010|newspaper=[[U-T San Diego|San Diego Union-Tribune]]|access-date=13 March 2011}}</ref>

He is a frequent guest speaker on various American news channels, where he talks about the atrocities committed by Hamas.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://video.foxnews.com/v/3705506247001/|title=Hamas founder's son speaks out against terrorist group|website=Fox News}}</ref>

==Films==
A documentary adaptation of ''[[Son of Hamas]]'' titled ''[[The Green Prince(2014)|The Green Prince]]'', directed and written by Nadav Schirman, premiered at the 2014 [[Sundance Film Festival]],<ref>{{cite news |author=Tatiana Siegel |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sundance-film-festival-unveils-2014-662009 |title=Sundance Film Festival Unveils 2014 Competition Lineup |newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter |date=4 December 2013 |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref> where it won the Audience Award for World Cinema: Documentary. ''[[The Green Prince(2014)|The Green Prince]]'' will be re-made into a live-action feature film.<ref>{{cite news |author=Debra Kamin |url=https://variety.com/2014/film/news/the-green-prince-to-be-remade-as-feature-film-1201156548/ |title='The Green Prince' to Be Remade as Feature Film |newspaper=Variety |date=13 April 2014 |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref>

Yousef is collaborating with US-based actor and film producer Sam Feuer in the production of two films: a feature film adaptation of Yousef's book ''[[Son of Hamas]]'' and documentary ''[[The Green Prince(2014)|The Green Prince]]'', and a historical depiction of the life of the Muslim prophet [[Muhammad]] based on the accounts of eighth-century historian [[Ibn Ishaq]].<ref>{{cite news |author= Melanie Lidman |url=http://www.jpost.com/Features/InThespotlight/Article.aspx?id=274511 |title=Former Hamas man to 'tell truth' about Muhammad |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=21 June 2012 |access-date=28 July 2014}}</ref>

==Views and controversies==
Some elements of Yousef's story have been questioned. Former Shin Bet Deputy Chief [[Gideon Ezra]] described Yousef's claims as "too good to be true", and stated that, "there are hundreds of collaborators like him. He is not unusual. He just decided to write a book about it."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/08/05/when-the-son-of-hamas-spied-for-israel.html|title = When the Son of Hamas Spied for Israel|newspaper = The Daily Beast|date = 5 August 2014|last1 = Strochlic|first1 = Nina}}</ref> The conversion to Christianity narrative promoted by Yousef and his book publishers remains unsubstantiated as well. Critics have alleged that Yousef claimed he was a Christian (for a longer period of time) in order to help secure asylum in the United States. This tactic is common for Muslim immigrants seeking to avoid deportation to countries where [[apostasy]] laws exist.<ref>{{Citation needed|reason=Reliable source needed for the whole sentence|date=September 2019}}</ref> However, he has since become an active figure in evangelical non-denominational Christianity in America, and has appeared on programs such as ''[[The 700 Club]]''. Interest in the book from Christian readers helped make it a ''[[New York Times]]'' best-seller. During an appearance on ''The 700 Club'' to promote his book "Son of Hamas", he was welcomed and interviewed by host [[Pat Robertson]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www1.cbn.com/content/son-hamas-journey-terror-freedom|title=Son of Hamas: Journey from Terror to Freedom|date=7 September 2014|website=CBN.com - The Christian Broadcasting Network}}</ref>

At an "End Times Prophecy" conference in 2010, hosted by California-based evangelist [[Greg Laurie]], Yousef told the crowd in attendance that Islam is "the biggest lie in human history."<ref name="youtube.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T-8JwoO3qs |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171130212608/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T-8JwoO3qs&gl=US&hl=en |archive-date=2017-11-30 |url-status=dead|title=- YouTube|website=www.youtube.com}}</ref> He further suggested at the conference that the [[Quran]] should not be legal in the United States ("banned on American soil").<ref name="youtube.com"/>

In May 2016, talking to a ''[[Jerusalem Post]]'' conference in New York, Yousef claimed that at one time that he was working for, and being paid by, Israel, the United States, the Palestinian Authority, and Hamas, all at the same time. He went on to say that Islam as a whole is comparable to [[Nazism]], and must be defeated.<ref>[http://www.jpost.com/Annual-Conference/Son-of-Hamas-tells-JPost-conference-Islam-is-the-problem-454703 'Son of Hamas' tells Jerusalem Post conference: Islam is the problem] Jerusalem Post. 22 May 2016.</ref>

==Published works==
*{{cite book
|last=Hassan Yousef
|first=Mosab
|title=Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices
|location=Carol Stream, Illinois
|publisher=[[Tyndale House|Tyndale Momentum]]
|edition=First
|date=2 March 2010
|isbn=978-1-4143-3307-6
|url-access=registration
|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781414333076
}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Portal|Palestine|Biography}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140201181623/http://www.sonofhamas.com/ Archived copy of defunct official website of the book (February 1, 2014)]
*[http://www.jihadica.com/mosab-hassan-yousef-receives-death-sentence-from-the-global-islamic-media-front/ al-Qaida's reaction] to Mosab's [[Apostasy in Islam|Apostasy]] (August 2008)
*[http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=47356 Magazine article from Haaretz] (Feb. 2010)
*[http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2010/March/Son-of-Hamas-Journey-from-Terror-to-Freedom/ Interview on CBN] with Pat Robertson
*[http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/news/2010/03/100303_mosab_hassan_yousef.shtml Interview with BBC]'s Lyse Doucet and other reactions from Israel/Palestine
*Mosab very outspoken on BBC Arabic (12 March 2010): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp7bl-6OqDI arabic 30min]; [http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2416.htm engl. subtitle 5min]
*more details : [http://www.christianpost.com/article/20100323/transcript-mosab-hassan-yousef-on-terrorism-christianity/pageall.html transcript of a teleconference] with Christian journalists (18 March)
*[http://www.worldmag.com/articles/16566 Mosab wants to create a 'movement' in the Middle East]
*[http://www.ccfon.org/mediacentre.php?avid=315&avap=1 23min HARDtalk on BBC ]{{Dead link|date=April 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}(14 May 2010)
*[http://www.haaretz.com/magazine/friday-supplement/the-handler-1.290215 Long Interview] in Haaretz with Captain Loai, Mosab's Shin Bet-Handler (14 May 2010); [http://www.newsweek.com/id/238085 Similar to Newsweek] (17 May 2010)
* {{Cite web|url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/11245832/Palestinian-state-is-a-fantasy-says-son-of-Hamas-founder.html|title = Palestinian state is a 'fantasy', says son of Hamas founder|date = 22 November 2014|website = Telegraph|publisher = |last = Turner|first = Camilla}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yousef, Mosab Hassan}}
[[Category:1978 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Arab supporters of Israel]]
[[Category:Autobiographers]]
[[Category:Christian Zionists]]
[[Category:Converts to Protestantism from Islam]]
[[Category:Former Muslim critics of Islam]]
[[Category:Hamas]]
[[Category:Israeli spies]]
[[Category:Palestinian Christians]]
[[Category:Palestinian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Palestinian former Muslims]]
[[Category:Palestinian memoirists]]
[[Category:Palestinian people imprisoned by Israel]]
[[Category:People from Ramallah]]
[[Category:People of the Shin Bet]]

Mosab Hassan Yousef - Revision history

FranceGqd9358746: Updated formatting and improved readability

CleanupBot II: Removed empty portal template using script

->Rlink2: /* Views and controversies */Fixing archives for YouTube videos (WP:Link_Rot, WP:CEFC#Pre-emptive_archiving, phab:T294880)