Israeli minister: Dubai assassination shows no Hamas members are untouchable
By APSunday, February 28, 2010
Israeli minister says Hamas not untouchable
JERUSALEM — An Israeli Cabinet minister says the assassination of a Hamas operative in Dubai last month shows any member of the militant Islamic group can be targeted.
Trade Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer told Army Radio on Sunday that he had no idea who killed Mahmoud al-Mabhouh. But he said the slaying shows Hamas that “none of their people are untouchable.”
Ben-Eliezer, a former defense minister, said the killing would deter other Islamic militant groups.
Al-Mabhouh was killed by assassins in a posh Dubai hotel last month. Israel says al-Mabhouh was involved in smuggling weapons into the Gaza Strip. He was also wanted by Israel for the 1989 killing of two Israeli soldiers.
Israel hasn’t confirmed or denied involvement. But its Mossad spy agency has widely been suspected.
