A Palestinian man was charged Thursday in Jerusalem District Court with gathering intelligence as part of a plan to assassinate Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
Masa'b Bashir, a 25-year-old resident of Dir el-Balah in the Gaza Strip, has a valid entry permit into Israel due to his work with the organization "Doctors without Borders," the Tel Aviv-based Haaretz newspaper reported.
The planning for the assassination was conducted at the initial level only, and did not become operational, the report added.
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) activists in Dir el-Balah allegedly recruited Bashir, and dispatched him to gather intelligence on the security arrangements at the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem. He visited the site several times, and informed his PFLP handlers that the tight security would not permit the successful assassination of Olmert.
At a later stage, the PFLF decided to kill an Israeli working in archeological excavations in East Jerusalem. As part of that plan, Bashir allegedly underwent training in martial arts and firing a handgun.
© 2007 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
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