Israeli forces thwart Hamas bomb attack, arrest 2 suspects
The Hamas operatives wanted the attack to be against civilians, while the detained men wanted to target Israeli soldiers
A bomb attack directed by Hamas operatives from the Gaza Strip was thwarted by Israeli security forces, who arrested two Israeli citizens from the Arab village of Mu'awiya in the Ramot Menashe area of northern Israel.
According to a statement issued by Israel's Shin Bet domestic security agency, a joint operation of the General Security Service and the Menashe Area Crime Unit of the Israel Police led to the detention of Muhammad Amin Moslah, 24, and Mohammad Fayad Mahamid, 28. They were arrested a few weeks ago by the Shin Bet.
During the investigation, it was revealed that Moslah was recruited by a network of terrorist operatives within the military wing of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in order to carry out a bomb attack on the territory of Israel. The investigation also found that in order to carry out the attack, Moslah recruited his friend Mahamid.
"The two severed contact with the infrastructure in the Gaza Strip due to differences of opinion that emerged regarding the appropriate target for the attack - they were asked to plan an attack on election day, but the Hamas operatives wanted the attack to be against civilians, while the defendants wanted the attack to be against soldiers," a Shin Bet statement said.
After severing ties with the Hamas network, Moslah and Mahamid worked to promote the theft of weapons from soldiers, equipped with "Carlo" type weapons, while preparing for the possibility that they would use them. The two began to gather intelligence on a soldier bus station.
"On several occasions and in order to realize the connection to carry out the attack against soldiers, the defendants examined different bus stops... when they finally decided to carry out the attack against the soldiers at a bus station near the training base of the Golani Brigade, which is located in the area near Kfar Kara, since a station is packed with [Israeli] soldiers, especially on Thursdays," the Shin Bet specified.
"The investigation of the affair reveals once again the fact that the Hamas organization in the Gaza Strip exploits the Arab citizens of Israel and recruits them for the purpose of promoting terrorist activities in the territories of the State of Israel, while harming the fabric of their lives in Israeli society," it added.
The results of the investigation were forwarded to the Haifa District Attorney's Office, and on Friday an indictment was filed against Moslah and Mahamid on charges of serious security offenses.