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חשיפה: משת”פ של השב”כ מילכד את האופנוע של שני אנשי הג’יהאד האסלאמי שנהרגו אתמול בעזה

حصري: عميل للشاباك هو الذي قام بتفخيخ الدراجة النارية, ما ادى الى مقتل عنصرين من سرايا القدس

UPDATE: Israel HaYom’s weekend editor published this “hint” confirming that Israel assassinated the two Islamic Jihad members.

Yesterday, the Israeli Shabak and the IAF assassinated two Islamic Jihad (IJ) militants traveling through Gaza on a motorbike. According to an Israeli security source, the two had been suspected of planning an unspecified attack, probably in revenge for Israel’s murder of twelve IJ tunnel workers a few weeks ago.

A Gazan working on behalf of Shabak planted an explosive device on the motorcycle. The IAF had a drone in the sky surveying the scene and the drone spotters believed they saw an object on the bike that resembled such a device (“a suspicious object”). Once it was decided to murder the two, the drone activated the device electronically, which exploded killing the two.

IJ released a statement which concealed the real cause of the killings. It said the victims were killed in an accident as they prepared an attack. When queried, my source said he believed that IJ doesn’t wish to ratchet tensions any higher than they already are. If it admitted they were killed by Israel, this would place the group under even greater pressure to retaliate. It’s precisely these sorts of incidents which get out of control and lead eventually to Israeli invasions and thousands of dead on both sides. Last year, Hezbollah did almost the same thing after one of its leaders was assassinated by the Israelis.

The security source said he was releasing this information because Shabak’s Palestinian accomplice to murder had been removed from danger (presumably from Gaza).

It’s interesting that as both Hamas and Fatah negotiate about a unity government, with the talks recently delayed at Fatah’s request, it appears that IJ is seeking to establish its resistance bona fides (and perhaps show-up its Hamas rivals) by building tunnels and planning attacks against Israel.

With Trump’s Jerusalem grandstand eclipsing the promising news of a political reconciliation, it remains to be seen whether it will proceed. A deal was always a longshot given the animosity and history between the two groups.