Mofaz warns Syria over its involvement in terror

Haaretz ^ | September 05, 2004

[yonif]

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz issued a warning to Syria in comments he made to the cabinet Sunday, in which he referred to intelligence information about the growing involvement of the Damascus "terror headquarters" in terror attacks against Israel.

Mofaz added that Damascus is providing terror organizations with guidance and financial support. Mofaz said, however, that there is not enough evidence to prove that Syria was involved in planning the double bombing in Be'er Sheva last week, in which 16 people were killed.

Mofaz said that on the night before the Be'er Sheva attack, the Israel Defense Forces arrested about 30 terror activists as part of a comprehensive raid in the West Bank city of Hebron, where the suicide bombers lived. In retrospect, Mofaz said, some of those arrested were found to be connected to the bombings.

Diplomatic sources in Amman say senior Hamas members - including the chief of its political bureau, Khaled Mashal - have left Damascus in recent days due to fear that Israel intends to target them, the London-based newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reported on Sunday.

However, various sources earlier claimed that Mashal - the leader of the Hamas since the assassination of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and a target of a failed Israeli assassination attempt in Jordan in 1997 - is residing inside the Iranian embassy in Damascus to protect himself against a possible Israeli attack.

Al-Sharq Al-Awsat also said Mashal's deputy, Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook, and other senior Hamas members have left Damascus. Some of the leaders are said to have gone to an unknown location in Beirut, under Hezbollah's protection. Others have reportedly gone to Qatar.

The report also said that Abu Marzook, who holds an Egyptian passport, asked the Egyptian authorities for shelter in Cairo or El Arish. The Egyptian authorities did not respond to the request, because they are waiting for the outcome of the internal Palestinian dialogue they are leading in Cairo.

Syrian sources told the newspaper that there has not been any Hamas activity in Damascus for a number of months and that the propaganda office operating there closed down several months ago.

The Hamas leadership has received information that Israel is planning to carry out assassination attempts by bombing the locations where the organization normally operates, source affiliated with the organization said Saturday. As a result, senior Hamas members operating in Syria and Lebanon have been on constant alert in recent days, the sources said.

Citing Arab diplomatic sources, an Arab language Web site, Ilaf, reported Saturday that a senior Jordanian diplomat met with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, warning him that targeting Hamas leaders abroad "would drag the region into an abyss."

[RISU]

warning him that targeting Hamas leaders abroad "would drag the region into an abyss.

Taking out Hamas leaders who are "out in the world" would be a very good thing indeed, for everyone who is civilized.