A shipment of smuggled weapons destined for Gaza's Hamas terror group was seized in a joint maritime operation conducted the Israeli Navy and the Shin Bet Internal Security Service, the IDF revealed Wednesday.
The operation was carried out on April 8, and saw three people who left Gaza by ship arrested by Israeli forces off the coast of Egypt and taken away for questioning by the Shin Bet, while the vassal with which they used to leave the coastal enclave was seized.
"We hit a significant route that was used to transfer components to manufacture weapons for terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip," said Col. Eli Sukholitsky, commander of the Navy's Ashdod base.
"The IDF operates constantly to prevent the strengthening of terrorist organizations and their infrastructure."
"The joint efforts of the IDF and Shin Bet intelligence services, supported by the forces on the ground and the naval control system, led to the successful dismantling," Sukholitsky added.
Mahmoud Bakr was identified as one of the three smugglers. He is described as a senior smuggler who worked with several terror groups in the Gaza Strip. The other two smugglers were named as Ahmed Ismail Fasih and Mahmud Nahad Silawi.
With the Gaza Strip blockaded by both Israel and Egypt, Hamas often attempts to smuggle weaponry and other contraband via both smuggling tunnels and the Mediterranean Sea.
Story republished with permission from i24NEWS