An Israeli counter-terrorism official charged Monday that members of the Palestinian security services were working with the radical Islamic movement Hamas to prepare attacks against Israel.
"We know that some senior members from their security services are involved in preparing Hamas members to launch attacks against Israel," said Lieutenant Colonel Udi Lev, a member of Prime Minister Ehud Barak's counter-terrorism bureau.
He would not say if they were senior enough to hold VIP passes which are granted to high-ranking Palestinians enabling them to travel freely into Israel from the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
"I don't know that (Palestinian leader Yasser) Arafat is involved directly," Lev told a press conference.
"But he is creating a 'green light' atmosphere to the Hamas, to the security services, to the Tanzim, to lead to the same goal -- to prepare attacks against Israeli targets," he added.
Tanzim is a wing of Arafat's Fatah faction that Israel accuses of stoking much of the Israeli-Palestinian violence that has erupted since late September, leaving more than 100 people dead.
Israel is on alert for possible attacks by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) which is violently opposed to the peace process and is behind most anti-Israeli attacks – JERUSALEM (AFP)
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