3 ‘Qassam engineers’ nabbed
Three Palestinian rocket production experts nabbed in southern Negev desert on way from Gaza to Jenin. Terrorists, who were assisted by bribed Egyptian police, planned to provide West Bank terror groups with Qassam know-how
The terrorists were apprehended near Mitzpe Ramon, in the southern Negev desert, at the beginning of the month, but the story was only now cleared for publication. According to the Shin Bet, the three were able to enter Israel with the assistance of bribed Egyptian police officers and a Bedouin accomplice.
Security forces recovered a “disk on key” containing instruction material from the Hizbullah on the production of explosives and bombs. The three terror suspects told interrogators they intended to “shake up the current situation.” The detainees are suspected of planning to also take part in abductions, rocket attacks, and the placement of powerful explosive devices.
The three will face indictments Monday at the Be’er Sheva district court.
The cell was headed by Sharif Ziada, a 34-year-old Gaza resident who has been dealing with the production of rockets, explosive devices, and explosive materials. Ziada was involved, among other attacks, in the bombing of an IDF Tank in Gaza in February 2002, a roadside bombing that killed three soldiers and wounded one.
The two other cell members were identified as Gaza residents Kamal Issa, 33, who was trained in rocket and explosives production, and Kazem Dib, 27, involved in the production and development of anti-aircraft weapons and explosive devices.
Hamas, Committees cooperate
Security sources said members of the cell took part in numerous terror attacks against Israeli targets in recent years. Their main object in moving to the Judea and Samaria region was to establish infrastructure for manufacturing weapons, mainly rockets.
The sources also pointed to the strong ties between the Popular Resistance Committees and Hamas in the Strip since the intifada’s outbreak.
The Committees have recently become a secretive operational wing of Hamas, due to Hamas' commitment to cease all military operations. Hamas also participated in the military training of the Committees' members
The heads of the Popular Resistance Committees in the Strip are Jamal Samhadana and Abed Koua. Samhadana, 42, of Rafah, was behind serious terror attacks and Qassam and mortar fire on Israel. Kuka, 43, of Gaza, heads the Committees in the northern part of the Strip.
Kuka, a former Hamas terrorist, is the man responsible for the manufacturing of weaponry for the Committees, including the production and shooting of rockets. He was involved in large-scale terror attacks, including the strikes against IDF tanks in Gaza.
Border breached easily
The latest arrests revealed once again Israel's ongoing failure to secure its southern border. The breached border between Israel and Egypt in the area south of Nitzana has become one of the country's most pressing security concerns.
IDF Intelligence Chief Aharon Ze'evi Farkash lately warned that the al-Qaeda terror organization has established a base of operations in Sinai.
A top intelligence source told Ynet, referring to the southern sector, that "if Israel continues to be indifferent to this problem, this will become our next Lebanon."
Extending across 200 kilometers (approximately 125 miles,) the vulnerable, fenceless border has been used for the smuggling of narcotics, weapons, illegal aliens and women sold for prostitution.
Most of the smuggled weapons are intended for use by terror organizations in the strip.
Members of the Border Guard unit Ramon who patrol the area manage to thwart only about 50 percent of all smuggling attempts.
Residents of the area have often warned that the lack of a proper border will allow for the infiltration of terrorists into the region, and called for the erection of a security fence promptly.
