Posted on 03/14/2006 11:14:51 AM PST by SJackson
JERICHO
Ahmed Sa'adat, the mastermind behind the assassination of former tourism minister Rehavam Ze'evi in 2001, was captured alive by IDF troops Tuesday evening following a day-long seige of the Jericho prison where he was being held.
Five other men wanted by the IDF for involvement in the killing were also arrested.
According to Israeli security sources, the six decided to turn themselves in, likely due to the pressure of constant IDF bombardment of the prison throughout the day.
OC Southern Command Maj.-Gen. Yair Naveh said following the success of the operation that he was happy with the outcome and the with the performance of the IDF.
"This sends a clear a message that Jewish blood is not forfeit," said Naveh.
The PFLP issued a swift response to the arrest of their leader, saying that Israel "would pay dearly for her action. Our battalions will continue to destroy your enterprise."
Israel decided to raid the prison compound after US and British monitors left the prison citing security concerns. The monitors, according to a deal between Israel and former PA President Yasser Arafat, were charged with ensuring the incarceration of Ze'evi's killers.
Naveh reiterated Israel's stance that there was no prior cooperation between the US and Britain with Israel, and that the IDF was not informed by the monitors as to their decision to leave the prison.
Sa'adat had told Al-Jazeera television in a telephone interview from the jail, "We are not going to give up, we are going to face our destiny with courage."
During operation "Pay a Visit," which began Tuesday morning, Nahal Brigade troops along with the police's special anti-terror unit, broke into the facility amidst reports of explosions and heavy gunfire. PA sources said two Palestinians were killed - one policeman and one inmate - while three others were wounded in the exchange of fire.
Aside from the six, some 200 prisoners had already surrendered to IDF troops and were taken to the nearby Jewish settlement of Vered Jericho for interrogation. According to the IDF, whoever was of interest to security forces would be kept in Israeli custody. Seventy-six others, who were not of interest to security forces, were returned to the custody of the PA.
However, the main target of the operation was Sa'adat, who is the secretary general of the Popular Front of the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
IDF tanks, which fired rounds into the prison, combat helicopters flying overhead, and artillery, which fired shells at the prison from afar, where all part of the force that layed seige to the prison. A D-9 heavy bulldozer had begun tearing down the walls of the prison in order to flush the six suspects out. An IAF helicopter also fired a missile salvo at the compound.
The army took a hard-line stance throughout the day. One officer said, "We want to take them out alive, but if they threaten us we won't hesitate to kill them.
"We won't agree to any change in Sa'adat's prison status," said the officer.
He stressed that there was no deadline to the army's operation - "If needed we'll be here until the night. We don't plan on negotiating - either they come out or they die."
Ahed Gholam, one of the targeted prisoners, told The Associated Press by telephone, "Our prison is surrounded on all sides by Israelis. They are asking us over loudspeaker to come out. We will not come out under any circumstances."
An IDF officer explained that at around 9:30 in the morning, soldiers at the checkpoint to Jericho noticed the US and British monitors leaving the city, and that was how the IDF found out that the monitors were gone.
Internal Security Minister Gideon Ezra told Israel Radio that once it became evident that the international monitors had left the compound, as per the announcement of UK Foreign Minister Jack Straw, there was no other choice but to capture the PFLP operatives, who were likely to be released by the Hamas-led PA government.
PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday he was holding Britain and the US responsible for the Israeli raid on the prison and demanded that Israeli forces withdraw.
"The American and the British side bear full responsibility for any harm to the lives" of the prisoners, Abbas said in a statement released by his office.
The decision by the foreign guards to leave their posts "is a grave violation of agreements reached in 2002," the statement said.
The army said there was no coordination with the US and UK guards, but a contingency plan was in place for such an event.
In a telephone conversation with Meretz-Yahad Chairman Yossi Beilin, Abbas said that if the IDF evacuates the area, he promises to keep the prisoners there.
Abbas told Beilin that he calls on Israel to prevent an unnecessary deterioration of the situation and to pull back from the prison to prevent further bloodshed.
The IDF spokesman issued the following statement, "Due to the violations of understandings reached with the Palestinian Authority regarding the incarceration of the murderers of government minister Ze'evi murderers and additional senior terrorists in the Jericho jail, and after international monitors left the city due to the PA's violations, security forces, after receiving a government directive, have entered the jail to arrest the Ze'evi murderers and additional terrorists."
Sa'adat is being held for his involvement in ordering the assassination of Ze'evi in 2001. In accordance with an arrangement with the PA, he was guarded by British and US wardens, in addition to Palestinian jailers.
However, Straw criticized the PA for failing to guarantee the monitors' security, blaming the PA for their withdrawal.
"The UK and the US withdrew our monitors from the Jericho Monitoring Mission on March 14. It is the prime responsibility of the Palestinian Authority to ensure the personal security of the monitors. Over the last months it has become increasingly clear that the Palestinian Authority is unable to do this," he said in a statement released Tuesday.
According to Straw, "The UK and the US have repeatedly raised our concerns over the security of our monitors with the Palestinian Authority and urged them to meet their obligations under the Ramallah agreement. Unfortunately, there has been no improvement. The Palestinian Authority has consistently failed to meet its obligations under the Ramallah Agreement."
Israel Radio reported that the soldiers also evacuated students and teachers from a nearby school. An armored bulldozer was also seen at the site.
As a result of the operation, the Israel Prison Service has increased its alert level in all facilities where security prisoners are being held.
On Sunday, defense and security officials told The Jerusalem Post that in the event the newly elected Palestinian government decides to release Sa'adat from his Jericho jail, Israel would hunt him down. "He and all those involved in Ze'evi's murder will not roam freely," a security official said. The official warned "if they are released from jail they will be targeted by us. Under no circumstances will they be allowed to enjoy freedom of movement outside jail."
Sa'adat, the secretary general of the Popular Front of the Liberation of Palestine is believed to have masterminded Ze'evi's assasination. He never stood trial but was included in the deal struck with the Palestinian Authority whereby he, together with five others involved in Ze'evi's murder would be transferred to Jericho jail where they would be supervised by British and US agents.
Prior to their leaving Yasser Arafat's Mukata compound in Ramallah to be transferred to Jericho, Arafat held a kangaroo court in his office and sentenced the four cell members.
Hamdi Koran, who pulled the trigger and was sentenced to 18 years hard labor, Basel al Amar, sentenced to 12 years hard labor, Majdi Rimawi to eight years and Ahed Gholam to one year.
Fuad Shubaki, the paymaster of the weapons smuggling ship Karine A was also incarcerated with the PFLP cell members.
...and the walls came tumbling down.
I expect these dudes are wishing they were back in U.S./British hands. The IDF will now begin the process of extracting information from them . . .
Operation "Pay A Visit"...heh.
}:-)4
(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")
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That's too bad.
Maybe the Israelis can rectify their mistake.
This guy obviously commands the 'Jack Bauer' Brigade.
This is great news!
They should never have been allowed to escape to Jericho.
The fate of the murderers of Minister Ze'evi, an Israeli hero, a General, should never have been left to other countries and the PA. Further this was not really a jailing. It was akin to a plush house arrest for murderers.
This deal was shoved down Israel's throat, in 2002 during Operation Defensive Shield, after the IDF surrounded Arafat's Muktada HQ in Ramallah because these murderers were holed up there under Arafat's protective umbrella.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/middle_east/1957542.stm
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=98944
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