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Shin Bet nabs explosive-smuggling Israeli Arabs
[Jerusalem Post] Nasrallah approves complex infiltration involving drug pushers in Leb and Israel, security officials say.The Shin Bet prevented a series of planned Hezbollah terrorist attacks recently, after a group of Israeli Arabs helped smuggle 20 kg. of high-grade explosives into the country. On Wednesday, eight residents of Nazareth and the town of Ghajar -- half of which is in Israel and the other half in Leb -- were charged in the Nazareth District Court with helping to smuggle the explosives. Most of them are believed to be drug pushers. A number of Ghajar residents smuggled the C-4 plastic explosives into Israel in a single bag by on June 5. Each kilogram was wrapped separately and could have been used to assemble a separate bomb. The bag was transferred a few days later to a resident of Nazareth, Abed Zoabi -- a known drug pusher -- who hid it in his backyard. The Israel Police found the C-4 in mid- July. "The explosives could have been used against any type of target inside Israel," a senior Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) official said on Wednesday.
The Shin Bet official said that such an operation -- smuggling explosives into Israel from Leb -- would have needed approval from the top Hezbollah echelon, likely including the organization's leader, Hassan Nasrallah. The official said it was possible that Hezbollah was working with other people to recruit faceless myrmidons who would then be used to carry out attacks in Israel. So far, the Shin Bet has not enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! anyone who was supposed to carry out the attacks. Zoabi, according to the Shin Bet, was in touch with a Lebanese drug pusher named George Nimer who has ties with Hezbollah and instructed Zoabi to hold on to the bag of explosives. Nimer told Zoabi that someone would contact him soon to collect it. The Shin Bet said there was concrete intelligence linking Nimer to Hezbollah and to specific operatives in the organization. Zoabi and Nimer spoke by cellphone after two of Zoabi's friends helped smuggle Israeli SIM cellphone cards to Jordan whence they were then sent to Leb. One of the suspected drug pushers enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! in Ghajar, Shahid Ibrahim, received the bag and hid it for a short time in a field he owns near the village. Ibrahim's brother-in-law is Said Kahamuz, an Israeli citizen and former resident of Ghajar who fled to Leb in 2006 as he stood trial for smuggling drugs into Israel. The Shin Bet official said that revelation of the terrorist plot was not expected to lead to a drop in Hezbollah's motivation to attack Israelis at home and throughout the world. "Hezbollah is trying to create a deterrent with Israel and they think that attacks like these will achieve that," the official said. While Arab Israelis have been enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! before on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks, the current arrests included one of the largest hauls of explosives that were ready for use. The Nazareth Magistrate's Court extended the custody of the defendants until August 29. "The uncovering of this cell prevented major terrorist attacks," Northern District police head Asst.-Ch. Roni Attia said in Nazareth on Wednesday. "Now, when the complex security reality is knocking on our door, inside and outside the country, the public has an opportunity to take a close look at the systematic and combined work of all the security forces," Attia said. He added that the northern police district dedicates considerable resources to counterterrorism, alongside crimefighting. In 2001, residents of Rama, near Karmiel, and Daliat al- Carmel, near Haifa, were enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! for smuggling narcotics and arms from Leb. Security forces said the weapons were destined for faceless myrmidons in the West Bank. In 2002, a group of Israeli Arabs was enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! for sending sensitive information to Hezbollah in exchange for cash and for drugs that were later sold in Israel. Security forces enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! residents of Ghajar and Kiryat Shmona in 2003 on suspicion of taking part in smuggling large quantities of arms and drugs on behalf of Hezbollah, and collecting sensitive information in Israel. In recent years, several Israeli Arabs were enjugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! on suspicion of plotting attacks after falling under the ideological sway of al-Qaeda.
"Everyone is in total shock. The people of Ghajar are citizens of Israel in every sense of the word and they would not do something like this," attorney Kamal Hattib, a Ghajar resident, said. Hattib, who represents defendant Musa Hattib, said his client "has nothing to do with any sort of terror plot," adding that he "is the last person who would do something like this." Hattib said the court and the security services agree, as his client is only facing charges that deal with drug trafficking and not security offenses. Smuggling has been a way of life for some residents of Ghajar, an Alawite village of around 2,500 residents on the Golan Heights. The village straddles the border of Leb and Israel with residents living on both sides, while the Hatzbani River, a popular conduit for contraband, runs along the edge of the village. Since the Second Leb War in 2006, the IDF and security services have operated a checkpoint at the entry to the village. Residents complain that the "blockade" has dried up local businesses and limited employment opportunities for the village's youth. Hattib, who has also represented villagers in a lawsuit seeking compensation from the state for damage caused to local houses during the Second Leb War, said, "There is a blockade here, and you are searched every time you leave or enter the village. With all of that and the army, and the police, they still can't secure this one part of the border? The government needs to wave a flag of surrender, because they have failed completely and they are to blame." Posted by: trailing wife 2012-08-09 |
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