Six new suspects in killing of Hamas official were carrying British passports

Dubai police today identified 15 more suspects wanted over the murder of a senior Hamas official in the Gulf emirate last month, including a further six who used British passports.

The announcement brings to 26 the total number of people suspected of involvement in Mahmoud al-Mabhouh's assassination, which is widely believed to have been the work of Israel's secret service, the Mossad.

The six new British names are Mark Daniel Sklar, Roy Allan Cannon, Daniel Marc Schnur, Philip Carr, Stephen Keith Drake and Gabriella Barney. A Foreign Office spokesman said the government believed their passport details had been used fraudulently.

"We can confirm that six more UK passports have been identified. We will seek to make contact with these individuals and offer consular assistance as we have the previous individuals. We continue to work closely with the Emirati authorities. The foreign secretary and others have made clear we expect full Israeli co-operation."

It was not immediately clear where the six live.

The mother of Sklar, who declined to give her name, said her son lived and worked in Israel. She said neither she nor her son had been contacted by the Foreign Office, but she had spoken to him today after being contacted by journalists. "He was very shocked," she said. "It's a bit worrying".

Another of those named, an Israeli living in Tel Aviv, said he was angry and shocked to find his identity had been stolen. Adam Korman, 34, works in a shop in Rothschild Avenue, Tel Aviv. He was born in Australia but emigrated to Israel as a child and holds joint citizenship. "I am shocked, it's identity theft – simply unbelievable," he told Ynet, the website of the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper. "I am quite shocked and can't believe this is happening," he said.

Korman is the eighth Israeli citizen so far to have his identity stolen by the suspected assassins in Dubai. Like all the others, he said he had not visited Dubai, but did travel around the world and regularly flew back to Australia.

"I have been frightened and shocked since receiving the news. It's irresponsible and a violation of human and individual rights to do such a thing," he said.

Israeli officials have rejected claims of involvement by the Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service, although they have not specifically denied any role. Instead, the government keeps to a policy of "ambiguity" over Mossad operations. But on Tuesday Tzipi Livni, leader of the opposition Kadima party and a former foreign minister, praised the killing. "The fact that a terrorist was killed, and it doesn't matter if it was in Dubai or Gaza, is good news to those fighting terrorism," she said at a conference in Jerusalem.

Dubai police say the newly named suspects were believed to have provided "logistical support" for the operation. Many had credit cards that were issued by the same US bank.

At least three women are now suspected of involvement in the hit, one of whom used a UK passport. Other suspects were travelling on passports issued by Australia.

The total number of UK passports linked to the case has risen to 12 and French passports to five. The suspected hit squad flew in from Munich, Paris, Rome, Milan and Hong Kong.

David Miliband, the foreign secretary, has described as an outrage the alleged abuse of British passports and an investigation is under way by the serious organised crime agency, Soca.

A Soca spokesman said the agency was trying to track down the people named by Dubai police. "The genuine passport holders have not been confirmed as being directly linked to the murder," he said.

The EU has also condemned passport abuse, without mentioning Israel.

The Dubai authorities have been using immigration records and CCTV images of the suspects to try to piece together what happened in the hours before Mabhouh's murder.

Israel has said Mabhouh played a key role in smuggling Iranian-supplied rockets into the Gaza Strip and was involved in the abduction and killing of two soldiers 20 years ago.