The Britons who mounted the suicide attacks in Israel attempted to join the peace movement as cover for their activities, the Guardian has learnt.
As Israeli police mounted a manhunt for the alleged failed British suicide bomber Omar Khan Sharif, fearing he would attempt another attack, human rights sources told the Guardian that Sharif and his accomplice Asif Mohammed Hanif, arrived at the offices of the International Solidarity Movement in Rafah and made contact with its members just days before the bombing. The contact with the ISM, which has organised human shields and peace protests, could prove vital to the Israeli security services as they try to piece together the movements of the pair following their entry to the country. One activist, who asked not to be named, recognised the pair when they were shown on Israeli TV. He spoke to them last Friday at the spot where American human shield Rachel Corrie was killed by an Israeli bulldozer. He said: “They did not seem tense or edgy. You didn’t get the impression they were planning to carry out a suicide bombing within a few days. “They were of Asian descent but they were very British. As soon as I heard their names on the television my heart sank. I didn’t need to see the pictures. When they showed their passports on the TV, it was them.” Full Story
