Israel prevents massive multiple-bombing attack

The Israeli Security Agency, Shin Bet, revealed on Monday that it stopped an extensive terror attack in Israel on Dec. 14, which was to involve a massive bombing, as well as several suicide bombings. 

The authorities said they nabbed a four-man terror cell in the West Bank, but that the complex terror operation being planned appeared to be have been initiated from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. The Shin Bet revealed that the terror cell received instructions from Ahmed Omar Hajaj, a Gaza-based explosives expert. 

The four Arab suspects reportedly are affiliated with both the “Resistance Committees” and the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a terrorist organization affiliated with the Fatah party – formerly, the Palestinian National Liberation Movement. 

The terror cell’s plans were at an advanced stage with a large bomb already built and ready to be deployed. The bomb reportedly was similar to the sophisticated bomb used in November in a lethal terror attack targeting a Jerusalem bus. The terror plot reportedly also involved other Gaza-based terrorists. 

The Shin Bet announced that the successful anti-terror operation was the result of cooperation with the Israeli Defense Forces and the Israel Police. 

“The actions that were carried out and that thwarted the planned attacks are part of a continuous campaign that the Shin Bet, the IDF and the police have been undertaking together to prevent terror in Israel using a diverse range of tools and tactics,” stated the Israeli Security Agency. 

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid praised the security forces for preventing the attack and promised that Israel would continue its efforts to “reach anyone who tries to hurt the citizens of Israel.”

The Israeli premier stressed that Israel’s fight against terrorism is a long-term effort that requires constant alertness and coordination. 

“The war against terror infrastructures and terrorists continues every day, in all arenas. Security forces continue to act, constantly, to thwart any attempt to harm us,” Lapid stated. 

In its assessment, Shin Bet blamed Hamas for the spread of terrorism from Gaza into Israel and the West Bank. 

“Israel views the terror activity directed from the Gaza Strip toward the West Bank and Israel with severity, and works to thwart any threat ahead of time, and considers Hamas to be responsible for all terror activity emanating from the Gaza Strip,” Shin Bet stated. 

Israeli authorities recently arrested Aslam Farouk, an Arab resident of Jerusalem who is believed to be a member of the Islamic State [ISIS] and to be behind November’s terror attack. 

The Shin Bet reported that 2022 was one of the most lethal years for both Israelis and Arabs in Israel and the adjacent disputed territories, with Arab terrorists killing 31 Israelis and injuring an additional 129 people. The report also registered more than 2,200 terrorist attacks this year in Israel and the West Bank. 

While most of the terror attacks were carried out by non-Israeli Arab residents in the West Bank and Jerusalem, some Israeli Arabs were also involved. The IDF also confirmed that 151 Arabs were killed during security operations – the overwhelming majority were armed terrorist combatants. 

The increase in terror attacks targeting Israel is believed to be linked to the ongoing smuggling of weapons, including arms stolen from IDF army bases and smuggled from Jordan and other countries. 

Israeli security officials tasked with monitoring the Jordan Valley, along the Jordanian border, told the Times of Israel that it foiled about 80% of all weapons-smuggling attempts from Jordan in 2022. All in all, Israeli authorities captured some 500 guns that could have ended up in the hands of terrorists or criminals inside the Arab Israeli community.