(Ha'aretz) Avi Issacharoff - Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was a linchpin of Hamas' efforts to smuggle arms from Iran into Gaza. His death dealt a severe blow both to the organization's operations and its image - which explains why Hamas has been exhibiting panic for the last few weeks. The leaders of Hamas' military wing, which Mabhouh helped found, vowed revenge and will clearly do their best to carry out some attack on Israel soon to uphold their jihadi image. When he was killed, Mabhouh was en route to Sudan - where, according to foreign reports, Israel once bombed an arms convoy headed for Gaza. Before Hamas can resume its smuggling, it must find out how some intelligence agency penetrated its smuggling network. Moreover, the killing has a deterrent effect - Hamas' boasts of its military prowess will now be taken with a grain of salt by the people in Gaza.
2010-02-19 09:03:50Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive