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Israel - Cynical use of Islamic holy site
"Laying the bomb in the mosque is a cynical use of holy Islamic sites by the terrorist organizations and endangers the lives of many worshipers," - Knesset member Ahmed Tibi sharply denounced the bomb planting
Zionist Security forces found a bomb hidden in a large mosque in the Arab town of Taibeh early Friday and removed it safely before some 1,000 worshipers were due there for a morning prayer session.
Taibeh community leaders and residents expressed anger with the terrorist organizations for exploiting Israeli Arabs and a holy site for their attacks.
The 15-kilogram bomb was found in the Haled Ibn Al Walid mosque, one of the largest in the town, which is located near the seam line. At about 2 A.M. Friday, city police telephoned Mayor Salah Jabara and told him of the arrest near Nablus of two Islamic Jihad activists, who confessed to putting the bomb in the mosque.
Jabara and other city elders cooperated with the police and security forces to help evacuate dozens of residents in the mosque's vicinity, while police sappers entered the building. They found the bomb concealed in the mosque's bathroom, and after two hours of intensive efforts, removed it from there and brought it to an empty field to be neutralized.
Town residents cooperated with the security forces' instructions in what was described afterward as "extraordinary and unprecedented in Taibeh."
"There was full understanding on the residents' part; they cooperated exceptionally well," Jabara said.
Cynical
The police, town elders and religious leaders later issued a joint statement explaining the security forces' actions and the need for the evacuation. "Laying the bomb in the mosque is a cynical use of holy Islamic sites by the terrorist organizations and endangers the lives of many worshipers," according to the statement distributed among residents.
The statement used the term "terror organizations" rather than "Palestinian rejectionist organizations" or "Al Muqawma," as they are usually called in the Arab community.
The residents and their leaders were furious with the Palestinian Authority and Palestinian organizations, primarily Islamic Jihad, whose activists had planted the bomb. "If the information about the bomb had not reached the security forces in time, a terrible, tragic disaster could have occurred in Taibeh," said Jabara. "The use of holy sites to harm innocent civilians is no less severe than a terrorist attack. What depths have these people sunk to?"
Knesset member Ahmed Tibi sharply denounced the bomb planting and reiterated his call to Palestinian organizations to stop exploiting holy sites. "We denounce every attempt to harm innocent civilians and using young Israeli Arabs in Arab towns and villages for these purposes," Tibbi said.
Taibeh community leaders and residents expressed anger with the terrorist organizations for exploiting Israeli Arabs and a holy site for their attacks.
The 15-kilogram bomb was found in the Haled Ibn Al Walid mosque, one of the largest in the town, which is located near the seam line. At about 2 A.M. Friday, city police telephoned Mayor Salah Jabara and told him of the arrest near Nablus of two Islamic Jihad activists, who confessed to putting the bomb in the mosque.
Jabara and other city elders cooperated with the police and security forces to help evacuate dozens of residents in the mosque's vicinity, while police sappers entered the building. They found the bomb concealed in the mosque's bathroom, and after two hours of intensive efforts, removed it from there and brought it to an empty field to be neutralized.
Town residents cooperated with the security forces' instructions in what was described afterward as "extraordinary and unprecedented in Taibeh."
"There was full understanding on the residents' part; they cooperated exceptionally well," Jabara said.
Cynical
The police, town elders and religious leaders later issued a joint statement explaining the security forces' actions and the need for the evacuation. "Laying the bomb in the mosque is a cynical use of holy Islamic sites by the terrorist organizations and endangers the lives of many worshipers," according to the statement distributed among residents.
The statement used the term "terror organizations" rather than "Palestinian rejectionist organizations" or "Al Muqawma," as they are usually called in the Arab community.
The residents and their leaders were furious with the Palestinian Authority and Palestinian organizations, primarily Islamic Jihad, whose activists had planted the bomb. "If the information about the bomb had not reached the security forces in time, a terrible, tragic disaster could have occurred in Taibeh," said Jabara. "The use of holy sites to harm innocent civilians is no less severe than a terrorist attack. What depths have these people sunk to?"
Knesset member Ahmed Tibi sharply denounced the bomb planting and reiterated his call to Palestinian organizations to stop exploiting holy sites. "We denounce every attempt to harm innocent civilians and using young Israeli Arabs in Arab towns and villages for these purposes," Tibbi said.
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The region was placed on high alert earlier in the day following intelligence warnings of a possible terrorist infiltration. However, following the capture of the terrorists, the alert was lowered.
Earlier in the evening Zionist troops killed a Hamas activist east of the city of Taibeh, on the Green Line. It is still not clear if the two incidents are connected. Police also closed off the road between the Haroeh and Hefer junction in the West Bank after a suspicious figure was seen in the area.
A unit of reserve Zionist soldiers noticed the man, who arose their suspicions. The man didn’t respond to their request to halt, and was subsequently shot. It is still unclear if he is terrorist or an innocent bystander
Zionist Border Police officers were scouting the area and had set up roadblocks at the entrance to towns in the area.
<b> The search effort was focusing on the area around the village of Taibeh, </b> and there were long traffic jams in the Sharon region as a result of the roadblocks.
Earlier in the afternoon, Border Policemen shot dead a man who stabbed an officer on the Wadi Ara Road, near the Israeli Arab village of Umm al Fahm.
Border Police officers patrolling the region had considered the man to be suspicious-looking and asked him to stop for questioning. The man, an Umm al-Fahm resident, approached the officers and stabbed one of them in the torso, lightly wounding him. Other officers then shot him dead.
Police checked to see if the man was carrying explosive material, but did not find any. Some of his neighbors reported that he was mentally unstable.
Police commissioner Shlomo Aharonisky said that the assailant had also attempted to grab one of the officer's weapons, and that the police reacted appropriately to the apparent threat.