Abu Rop at hospital
Photo: AFP
IDF operating in West Bank (Archives)
Photo: AP
IDF says killed Jihad commander near Jenin; Palestinians: It's not him
Military claims soldiers who stormed home of Ala a-din Abu Rop found him fully armed and shot him dead, adding that he was planning terror attack in Israel. Palestinians say man killed not Islamic Jihad leader but man who bore same name
IDF officials said forces operating in Qabatiya during the early hours of Thursday morning killed Ala a-din Abu Rop, the 21-year-old commander of Islamic Jihad's branch in West Bank village, located south of Jenin.
The army said Abu Rop was killed in a joint operation carried out by the Shin Bet and soldiers from the Nahal Haredi Battalion and Duvdevan, an elite special forces unit.
However, Palestinian sources in Jenin told Ynet that the man killed was not the Islamic Jihad commander, but another man who they claimed bore the same name. According to the sources, Abu Rop is being held by Palestinian Intelligence.
Abu Rop's brother said he had been arrested in the past and has been wanted for the past year and a half. He said troops barged their home and shot his brother while he was sitting at a computer.
The military said the troops found Abu Rop fully armed, adding that weapons and ammunition were found during a search of the home. According to the IDF, Abu Rop was currently planning attacks against Israel.
The joint Shin Bet-IDF operation was made possible following the recent arrest of five members of the cell which Abu Rop commanded over. The army said Abu Rop was imprisoned in Israel a number if times in the past.
"Security forces have been trying to get their hands on Abu Rop for some time now. The intelligence gathered on him and on the cell he commanded over was concrete," a military official told Ynet, "we know for a fact that he was plotting an attack against Israel's home front."
Ali Waked and AP contributed to the report
