The trial of 26 Hizbullah terrorists accused of plotting attacks on tourist resorts and ships passing through the Suez Canal has begun in Egypt. The original targets were Israelis traveling in the Sinai Peninsula, according to Agence France Press, which said the plans were abandoned on the orders of the Hizbullah leadership.
Thousands of Israeli tourists travel through Sinai every holiday season despite warnings by the government of the risk of kidnapping attempts and other attacks by terrorists.
The news agency quoted defense attorney Abdel Moneim Abdel Maqsoud as saying the attacks were to have been a response to the February 2008 assassination in Damascus of Hizbullah's second-in-command.
"Those whose names appear on the list, including... Lebanese Mohammed Youssef Ahmed Mansour, known as Sami Shehab, told prosecutors during questioning that they initially planned attacks against Israeli tourists in Sinai in response to the killing of Imad Mughnieyh, but that orders came from Hizbullah leadership banning such activities," Maqsoud said. Sami Shehad was named in April by Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah as an agent of the terrorist organization.
Israel has denied any connection to the car bombing in which Mughniyeh was killed.
Among the suspects are two Lebanese nationals, five Palestinian Authority Arabs and 19 Egyptians. All face charges of "conspiracy to murder, spying for a foreign organization with the intent to carry out terrorist attacks, and possession of weapons."
Four other suspects are being tried in absentia, including the alleged mastermind of the conspiracy, Lebanese national Mohammed Qabalan.