An activist at the Islamic Resistance Hamas movement escaped Tuesday an arrest attempt by Israeli undercover unit in the West Bank city of Jenin, said reports.
The Jerusalem Post newspaper reported that an Israeli undercover unit failed to nab Nasser Jarrar at his home near Jenin, and were forced to leave the village after their presence was detected by Palestinian policemen and residents.
The unit took Jarrar's brother with them, but released him several hours later, said the Post.
The arrest attempt was carried out by the Duvdevan undercover unit, which arrived at Jarrar’s home only to discover he was not there, said the Post.
His mother apparently alerted Palestinian security personnel, who began shooting at the soldiers as they fled the area on foot and in vehicles as helicopters hovered overhead, added the paper.
According to AFP, this is another setback for the Duvdevan unit.
In August, three of its soldiers were accidentally killed by their own comrades when they were on a mission to apprehend another Hamas member in the West Bank.
It was not clear why Israel wanted to arrest Jerrar, and the army had no immediate confirmation of the incident, said the agency.
On Monday, a Hamas activist was shot dead in a refugee camp in Nablus in what the movement said was a cold-blooded assassination by Israel.
The army has carried out a number of pinpoint strikes against Palestinians it accused of waging attacks against Israel during the five-month Palestinian Intifada.
Thousands attended Mahmoud Madani’s funeral in Balata refugee camp in Nablus Tuesday chanting "revenge, revenge," said the Post.
"We tell our martyr that we will continue resistance until we get our rights and liberate Jerusalem," said Jamal Mansour, a Hamas leader in Nablus.
Palestinian police detained several Palestinians from Balata and whom they suspect helped Israel track and kill Madani, said reports.
"We have detained a number of people. We are investigating their involvement in the assassination of Madani," a Palestinian security source told The Jerusalem Post – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
