Israel arrested a suspected Irish bombmaker in the West Bank and was questioning him on the extent of his contact with Palestinian militants, Israeli security sources said. British and Irish newspapers had reported earlier that a manhunt was underway for a former Irish Republican Army (IRA) bombmaker suspected of training Palestinian militants in the West Bank. Israel has been on alert for attacks by foreigners acting on behalf of a 33-month-old Palestinian uprising in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since two British Muslims carried out a suicide bombing at a Tel Aviv nightclub in April, killing three people. According to reports in London’s Observer and Dublin’s Sunday Independent, the suspect had been a member of the mainstream IRA guerrilla group, but switched allegiances to the dissident Real IRA splinter group four years ago. The papers say he entered Israel on a British passport and slipped into the West Bank. Palestinian militants have largely suspended attacks against Israel as part of a truce brokered by the Palestinian leadership in order to advance a U.S.-backed “road map” to peace. Yet some West Bank-based militant offshoots have vowed to go on fighting. Full Story
About OODA Analyst
OODA is comprised of a unique team of international experts capable of providing advanced intelligence and analysis, strategy and planning support, risk and threat management, training, decision support, crisis response, and security services to global corporations and governments.