Israeli security forces thwarts Hamas terror attack from Turkey

Israel revealed on Monday that it successfully prevented an attempted Hamas suicide bombing terror attack in March, led by the militia’s members residing in Turkey.

On March 15, Israeli Security Agency (ISA) reportedly detained Anas Shurman, a former West Bank resident living in Jordan, for his alleged involvement in the Hamas bombing plot.

During the interrogation, Shurman revealed he had been recruited by Imad Abid, a Hamas official residing in Turkey. As a result, Israeli intelligence arrested six suspects, including five residents of Nablus, located in the Samaria, internationally known as the West Bank.

The planned terror attack reportedly involved a locally-produced 12-kilogram bomb hidden in a secret location in Samaria. The attack was to be carried out using a motorcycle; the terrorist had taken motorcycle lessons and had already filmed a last-will video.

Israeli authorities subsequently charged Shurman with security crimes including “attempting to intentionally cause death” of Israelis

ISA, known by the Hebrew letters Shin Bet, noted that the Turkish connection in the plot “reveals the entrenchment of Hamas… in Turkey and its involvement in directing terror attacks in Israel.”

While Turkey is a member of the American-led NATO defense alliance, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has emerged as a leading supporter of the terrorist militia Hamas.

“Hamas is not a terrorist organization, it is a liberation group, mujahideen waging a battle to protect its lands and people,” the Turkish president claimed, following Hamas' Oct. 7 attack.

Sinan Ciddi, a Turkey expert and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), assessed the long and deep ties between the Erdoğan regime and Iran's proxy in Gaza, Hamas.

“Erdoğan has patronized Hamas since 2011. Turkey’s choice to invest in this terrorist entity has thus far yielded Hamas fundraising, recruitment, and diplomatic benefits. It is now apparent that Erdoğan's Turkey is increasingly becoming a terrorism sanctuary and a staging ground to nurture militants who intend to carry out terror attacks, Ciddi wrote. "It is incumbent upon the U.S. State Department and Congress to monitor developments and, more importantly, to hold the Ankara regime accountable.” 

Erdoğan increasingly condemned Israel for defending itself against Hamas.

 In May, Turkish Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Kalin met with top Hamas general, Ismail Haniyeh, in Qatar to exchange views on a potential deal between Hamas and Israel in Gaza. Erdoğan compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the Nazi German leader Adolf Hitler.

“Netanyahu has reached a level that would make Hitler jealous with his genocidal methods,” Erdoğan said.

“Netanyahu and his administration, with their crimes against humanity in Gaza, are writing their names next to Hitler, Mussolini and Stalin, like today’s Nazis,” the Turkish president added.

Tyler Stapleton, FDD's director of Congressional Relations placed Erdoğan's pro-Hamas stance in the wider context of Turkey’s struggling economy, saying the Turkish leader's "open embrace of Hamas, along with his demonization of Israel, is emboldening terrorists long harbored in Turkey."

"With what seems to be a tactic of distraction to downplay the 75% inflation rate and economic turmoil in Turkey, Erdogan’s derogatory statements and actions towards Israel are facilitating the creation of new terror cells targeting Israelis,” Stapleton assessed.