Palestinian security forces thwarted on Sunday an attempted assassination that targeted the chief of Palestinian internal security colonel Rashid Abu Shbak. "Unidentified people planted a bomb yesterday near the Palestinian official's house in the region of Tal Al-Hawa south of Gaza," a security source who asked to be anonymous said. "Explosive experts who examined the area estimated the bomb weighed at 70 kilograms." the source added, indicating that it was defused.No Palestinian organization has claimed responsibility for an assassination attempt that targeted the chief of intelligence administration, Tariq Abu Rajab, headquarters yesterday. The blast wounded him and 15 people.
| Arab News adds... |
A previously unknown group that links itself to Al-Qaeda yesterday claimed responsibility for the failed attempt to kill Rajab on Saturday. In a statement posted on a website, the group said: “Your brothers in the Al-Qaeda in the Land of the Perpetually Aggrieved organization were capable of reaching the workplace of... Abu Rajab. The Mujahedeen were able to plant a bomb in the elevator.”The statement said Abu Rajab survived because the militants detonated the explosives before the elevator door had closed. The group also vowed to target Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Mohammed Dahlan, a former security chief.