Malaysian media reported on Monday that the local police released a man who was earlier abducted by agents working for the Mossad, an Israeli national intelligence agency.
According to a report in New Straits Times, local agents working for Israeli intelligence grabbed a man they identified as an operative of the Hamas group late last month. But later it emerged the man had been misidentified as a terrorist.
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Malaysian police after reported abduction of a Palestinian by agent working with Mossad
(Photo: AP)
A second Palestinian who was also in a car when the alleged abduction happened, quickly fled to a nearby hotel and called for help as the kidnappers drove away.
He then reported the incident to the police, who were able to locate the man and ultimately bring about his release.
According to the report, the agents took their victim's phone and discarded it, likely to avoid detection. He was brought blindfolded into a room and tied to a chair, and then connected by phone to two other men – likely Israelis – who said: "you know why you are here."
The report said he was interrogated for 24 hours and beaten. "The Israelis wanted to know about his experience with software, Hamas's strengths in that field and about members of the terror group's military wing," a source connected to the case told the outlet.
The source said that the Malaysian agents mistook their captor for the second Palestinian who was with him during the abduction. Both men have since left Malaysia, according to the report.
Israel was accused of assassinating a Fadi al-Batsh, an electrical engineering lecturer at a Malaysian university, affiliated with leaders of the Islamic Jihad terror group, allegations it had denied.