UAE says 4 more 'assassins' identified

United Arab Emirates has identified four more suspects, carrying British and Irish passports, in the Dubai killing of a Hamas commander, a source in the UAE familiar with the investigation said on Tuesday.

"The UAE has identified two British suspects holding British travel documents, and as part of the ongoing investigation has shared the information with the British government," the source told Reuters.

Two more suspects holding Irish passports were also identified, the source added.

The Dubai authorities have released the identities of 11 people who travelled on forged British, Irish, French and German passports to kill Hamas commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in a hotel in January.

The new information brings the tally of fraudulent British passports used to eight, and Irish identities used to five.

The six previously announced British identities used by the killers were all tracked down to British citizens living in Israel who say their identities were stolen.

Hamas has said Mabhouh was involved in smuggling weapons from Iran to the Gaza Strip. 

The report comes a day after the European Union condemned on the use of fraudulent EU passports and credit cards by the assassins.

In a short statement, which EU diplomats said was intended to increase pressure on Israel after last month's killing, EU foreign ministers said the assassination raised "profoundly disturbing" issues and said citizens' rights were violated. Israel was not explicitly mentioned in the statement.

"The EU strongly condemns the fact that those involved in this action (the assassination) used fraudulent EU member states' passports and credit cards acquired through the theft of EU citizens' identities," the ministers said in a declaration agreed at talks in Brussels.

Meanwhile, Dubai police chief Lt. Gen. Dhahi Khalfan Tamim told Emirati paper al-Bayan on Monday, "Despite Israel's attempts at denial, claiming there is no evidence that a Mossad cell carried out the assassination, the Dubai police are in possession of dozens of items of incriminating evidence against the cell which attest to the Mossad's involvement."

Also Monday, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman met with his Irish counterpart Michael Martin in Brussels. Lieberman was adamant in claiming that there is not so much as a shred of evidence connecting Israel to the hit on Hamas operative Mahmoud al-Mabhouh.

Martin reportedly demanded that Israel explain its involvement in the fabrication of Irish passports used in the operation.

"If evidence to the contrary would have been presented, other than in media reports, we would comment," he said. "Since such evidence doesn’t exist, there is no need to comment."