Brazilian police foil Hezbollah terror plan against Jews in Brazil, Israel's Mossad assists
Hezbollah was looking to recruit Brazilians to attack Jews
The Brazilian Federal Police Department, with the help of Israel’s foreign intelligence agency, Mossad, arrested two suspects on Tuesday for planning attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in Brazil.
The two suspects, allegedly linked with the Hezbollah Lebanese terror organization, are accused of attempting to recruit Brazilians to carry out “extreme actions in the country,” according to the Brazilian police.
The domestic terror plot was in the initial stages, the Times of Israel reported.
Among the intended targets were synagogues in the Jewish community, which consists of some 120,000 Brazilian Jews.
In addition to the two arrests, 11 search operations were carried out in two states and in the capital Brasilia to dismantle “terrorist organizations,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
This was an extensive network that also operated in additional countries, according to a rare statement by the Mossad and the Prime Minister’s Office in Israel.
“The Mossad thanks the Brazilian security services for the arrest of a terrorist cell that was operated by Hezbollah in order to carry out an attack on Israeli and Jewish targets in Brazil,” read the joint statement.
“Given the backdrop of the war in Gaza against the Hamas terrorist organization, Hezbollah and the Iranian regime are continuing to operate around the world in order to attack Israeli, Jewish and Western targets. The Mossad is working, and will continue to work, to thwart these efforts wherever necessary, by various methods.”
The Iranian terror proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah, has built a strong presence in parts of South America and has been exploiting the fact that a large community of Lebanese expats reside in countries, such as Venezuela and Colombia.
The World Jewish Congress estimates approximately 6,000 Jews live in Venezuela and about 2,100 in Columbia.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
