During a joint operation carried out by the IDF, General Security Services, and a special Border Police infiltration unit in the Jenin refugee camp, Mahmud Ibrahim Kasem Abid- also known as 'Abu Jahim'- was killed.
'Abu Jahim' was among the main directors and initiators of a suicide bombing scheduled for the upcoming Jewish holiday of Purim that was thwarted in central Israel two days ago.
Kassam Abid operated as one of the senior leaders of the Islamic Jihad infrastructure in northern Samaria, and was wanted for his operations as part of the terror organization. When he was arrested, Kassam Abid was armed with an M-16, and a number of explosive devices were found in his vehicle.
Security forces launched a pursuit on Tuesday (20/02/07) following information about a Palestinian citizen from the village of Jilabun who was known to have left Jenin with a bag of heavy explosives. The GSS and Israeli police department located the bag in the area of Rishon Letzion.
In his initial investigation the terrorist turned in information about his recruitment by 'Abu Jahim'. Furthermore, he received explosives to be used in the execution of a terror attack in the new Central Bus Station of Tel Aviv on the Jewish holiday of Purim - early next week
"There is certainly a direct connection between the arrest of the terrorist yesterday in Bat Yam and the elimination of the top terrorist in Jenin, and this is part of the ongoing struggle of the IDF, Border Police, and the GSS; we received intelligence information pertaining to the location of the terrorist as part of this continuous effort," said Menashe Brigade Commander, Colonel Hartzi Halevi, and added:
"A team of special infiltration forces arrived at the location and killed him at the heart of the city of Jenin. The terrorist was inside an armor-protected vehicle, realized he was being observed and attempted to threaten the IDF forces. I am glad our defense systems operated in this incident in order to thwart a terror attack in the center of the country; our mission is to carry out these activities in Jenin as best we can in order allow the residents of Tel Aviv and Bat Yam to live in quiet. IDF, GSS, and Border Police forces operate day and night in order to prevent and thwart terror activities and to achieve impressive and effective results as we achieve today."
The Brigade Commander also noted that "the Islamic Jihad terror organization receives a lot of support from terror operatives and collaborators in Damascus."
'Abu Jahim', born in 1986, a resident of the refugee camp in Jenin, has been a wanted Islamic Jihad operative for a long time. During the past two years, following many arrests of top Islamic Jihad infrastructure terrorists in northern Samaria and Tulkarm, 'Abu Jahim' has been marked a prime target by security services.
Abu Jahim is a known engineer in the Islamic Jihad infrastructure, and a scout recruiting potential suicide bombers. He acted as a high quality bomb constructer, and assisted tens of explosive attacks targeting IDF forces in Jenin.
(Communicated by Israel Security Services and other Sources)
Saturday, February 24, 2007
From the Heights of the Golan
The IDF Paratrooper Brigade has wrapped up a massive multi-month exercise with a final exhibition last week on the Golan Heights. The Paratroopers' maneuvers, which were held in conjunction with units from the Air Force, the Armored Corps, Combat Engineering, Artillery, Field Intelligence, and Logistics - were the most extensive and complex in the last six years.
The exercises, which were carried out on the battalion level, included various combat scenarios, among them combat in built-up urban areas, open fields, and mountainous regions. The exercises culminated on Wednesday in "wet" drills, which are live-fire exercises, which were aimed at determining the level of coordination among the various units in combat situations.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi, and other members of the General Staff toured the area and joined dozens of soldiers who congregated at various observation points overlooking the Mt. Shifon ridge to get a view of the exercise's grand finale.
"Our goal was to prepare the warriors to deal with operative challenges that await them in the future together with all the forces that we will combine with in an emergency situation," an army official said.
(Communicated by the IDf Spokeperson)
The exercises, which were carried out on the battalion level, included various combat scenarios, among them combat in built-up urban areas, open fields, and mountainous regions. The exercises culminated on Wednesday in "wet" drills, which are live-fire exercises, which were aimed at determining the level of coordination among the various units in combat situations.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz, Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi, and other members of the General Staff toured the area and joined dozens of soldiers who congregated at various observation points overlooking the Mt. Shifon ridge to get a view of the exercise's grand finale.
"Our goal was to prepare the warriors to deal with operative challenges that await them in the future together with all the forces that we will combine with in an emergency situation," an army official said.
(Communicated by the IDf Spokeperson)
Galilean tour operators invest to promote tourism in the area
Galilean tour operators invest to promote tourism in the areaSome 160 enthusiastic members of the global tourism industry took over the Galilee's tourist attractions last week, in the framework of project "Go Galilee," aimed at exposing tour operators from across the world to Israel's beautiful north.
Data shows that, on average, tourists spend less than one night in the Galilee region. Therefore, hotel operators and tour agents decided to invest in marketing the area in the world in a bid to bring more travelers to the north.
Galilean tour operators invested some $200,000 in the project, in the hope that when their guests return home, they will spread the word of how beautiful and safe the Galilee is.
High-class Jewish tourists that visit the country on holidays, usually stay in five-star hotels in the Tel Aviv and coastal areas. Christian travelers, on the other hand, find the Galilee attractive due to its religious connotations. The “Go Galilee” marketing project was initially launched in 1990 addressing evangelistic audiences and tour operators. Results were visible on the ground as Galileans saw an increase in the number of Christian-evangelistic travelers.
"It is important for us that leading tourism agencies will get to know the many various attractions the Galilee has to offer and recommend travel packages we offer to their clients,” said Yaakov Zanberg, who is heading this marketing campaign.
This year as well, 115 travel agents and 45 journalists will be guests of the "Go Galilee" project.
"Tourism to the area was affected by the war as was the image of the State of Israel. We realized that it was crucial to the area's economy to invite as many decision-makers to the area as possible, to prove to them that it is safe, green and pleasant here." Zanberg added.
During their four-day trip, the agents and journalists will visit the Sea of Galilee, Nazareth, Tiberias, Safed and Jerusalem. "Their schedule is packed, but the experience is long-lasting," Zanberg said.
Copyright 2006 israel today Magazine. All rights reserved. Reproduced with Permission.
For Galilee Institute travel offerings - please visit http://www.gogalil.com
Data shows that, on average, tourists spend less than one night in the Galilee region. Therefore, hotel operators and tour agents decided to invest in marketing the area in the world in a bid to bring more travelers to the north.
Galilean tour operators invested some $200,000 in the project, in the hope that when their guests return home, they will spread the word of how beautiful and safe the Galilee is.
High-class Jewish tourists that visit the country on holidays, usually stay in five-star hotels in the Tel Aviv and coastal areas. Christian travelers, on the other hand, find the Galilee attractive due to its religious connotations. The “Go Galilee” marketing project was initially launched in 1990 addressing evangelistic audiences and tour operators. Results were visible on the ground as Galileans saw an increase in the number of Christian-evangelistic travelers.
"It is important for us that leading tourism agencies will get to know the many various attractions the Galilee has to offer and recommend travel packages we offer to their clients,” said Yaakov Zanberg, who is heading this marketing campaign.
This year as well, 115 travel agents and 45 journalists will be guests of the "Go Galilee" project.
"Tourism to the area was affected by the war as was the image of the State of Israel. We realized that it was crucial to the area's economy to invite as many decision-makers to the area as possible, to prove to them that it is safe, green and pleasant here." Zanberg added.
During their four-day trip, the agents and journalists will visit the Sea of Galilee, Nazareth, Tiberias, Safed and Jerusalem. "Their schedule is packed, but the experience is long-lasting," Zanberg said.
Copyright 2006 israel today Magazine. All rights reserved. Reproduced with Permission.
For Galilee Institute travel offerings - please visit http://www.gogalil.com
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