Security sources have warned that Jenin's terrorism industries will intensify following Israel's scheduled withdrawal from the area this summer.
The terrorists were arrested in a joint operation by the IDF and General Security Service. They were recently involved in obtaining raw materials used to manufacture projectile rockets, and held shooting experiments designed to develop and enhance their projectile rocket launching abilities.
Among the arrested terrorists was Muhammed Hasin Mahmed Mashkah, a resident of Jenin who was released this February from administrative detention as part of the latest prisoner release. Immediately upon his release, he became actively involved with wanted terrorists, assisting them in their projectile rocket manufacturing activities. Another of the arrested terrorists was Nada Zkarna, a member of a terrorist cell known for carrying out shooting attacks against the slated-for-demolition community of Kadim in northern Samaria.
In related news, Israeli security sources said today that anti-aircraft missiles that have been smuggled into the Gaza Strip might be moved to Samaria and used against commercial aircraft flying over central Israel. Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz told the Cabinet on Sunday that the Palestinian Authority has been asked to locate several Soviet-designed Strella missiles now in the Gaza Strip. "If they don't, then we will have to do it," Mofaz said.
The concern is that the rockets could be used against planes landing at or taking off from Ben Gurion International Airport, located only several kilometers from Samaria. The heat-seeking Strella missiles are capable of shooting down aircraft within a 5-kilometer range. On Nov. 28, 2002, Al-Qaeda terrorists fired two or three shoulder-launched missiles at an Israeli Arkia Airlines plane on its way from Kenya to Israel with over 260 passengers and crew on board. The plane had just taken off, but the missiles missed the plane and all passengers aboard were unhurt. In April 2003, it was reported that Al-Qaeda terrorists planned to fire a Strella-2 anti-aircraft missile at an El Al airliner landing in London's Heathrow International Airport.
The terrorists were arrested in a joint operation by the IDF and General Security Service. They were recently involved in obtaining raw materials used to manufacture projectile rockets, and held shooting experiments designed to develop and enhance their projectile rocket launching abilities.
Among the arrested terrorists was Muhammed Hasin Mahmed Mashkah, a resident of Jenin who was released this February from administrative detention as part of the latest prisoner release. Immediately upon his release, he became actively involved with wanted terrorists, assisting them in their projectile rocket manufacturing activities. Another of the arrested terrorists was Nada Zkarna, a member of a terrorist cell known for carrying out shooting attacks against the slated-for-demolition community of Kadim in northern Samaria.
In related news, Israeli security sources said today that anti-aircraft missiles that have been smuggled into the Gaza Strip might be moved to Samaria and used against commercial aircraft flying over central Israel. Defense Minister Sha'ul Mofaz told the Cabinet on Sunday that the Palestinian Authority has been asked to locate several Soviet-designed Strella missiles now in the Gaza Strip. "If they don't, then we will have to do it," Mofaz said.
The concern is that the rockets could be used against planes landing at or taking off from Ben Gurion International Airport, located only several kilometers from Samaria. The heat-seeking Strella missiles are capable of shooting down aircraft within a 5-kilometer range. On Nov. 28, 2002, Al-Qaeda terrorists fired two or three shoulder-launched missiles at an Israeli Arkia Airlines plane on its way from Kenya to Israel with over 260 passengers and crew on board. The plane had just taken off, but the missiles missed the plane and all passengers aboard were unhurt. In April 2003, it was reported that Al-Qaeda terrorists planned to fire a Strella-2 anti-aircraft missile at an El Al airliner landing in London's Heathrow International Airport.