IDF: Hamas Didn't Carry Out Attack – But Is Responsible

[Purveyor]

The attack on an IDF force patrolling the Gaza border earlier on Tuesday was carried out by a cell belonging to the Worldwide Jihad. An IDF tracker serving with the Gaza Division's southern brigade was killed and three additional soldiers were seriously wounded. The name of the tracker, a Bedouin from Rahat, is being withheld at the request of his family.

The IDF believes that the cell behind the attack is an extremist pro-Iranian group, which espouses a militant ideology that surpasses even Hamas' positions in its opposition to Israel. The group receives direct support from Tehran, but is connected in various ways to Hamas as well.

The army says that even though the attack was executed by this group, Hamas was involved and at the very least gave its consent to the plot.

Later in the afternoon the IAF targeted one of the perpetrators of the attack in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. Hussain Abu Shamia, a prominent operative belonging to the Worldwide Jihad, was confirmed injured in the strike. However military officials believe that Israel must broaden its response to the attack in order to deliver a stronger message to Hamas that Israel will not tolerate such violations of the ceasefire.

MORE...

YNETNEWS: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3662806,00.html

[Vegasaurus]

1. "Worldwide Jihad", "Islamic Jihad", Jihad this, Jihad that

What a waste of lives.

[bunnies]

2. Any excuse will do when it comes to destroying Gaza.

Let the collective punishment continue!

[Idealism]

3. Shiites and Sunni's working together, a sign of the apocalypse or just BS?

[ProgressiveProfessor]

4. They pull together when it comes to the "Little Satan"

[Idealism]

5. I wouldn't believe the Israeli military when it comes to 'terrorist links'

After all, they have thousands of Palestinians in jail, some even children, who they managed to convict on 'associations' and not much else thanks to Martial Law in the West Bank. Not to mention those detained without trial or evidence of crimes...

[ProgressiveProfessor]

6. I view it more as a face saving opportunity for Hamas

One of the enemy was killed, lost a couple of Gazans, and can blame it on someone else.

And yes the various groups that normally hate each other hate "da jews" worse and will work together against the "Little Satan"

[oberliner]

9. Where does this article mention Shiites and Sunnis working together? nt

[Idealism]

10. Chances are if it is explicitly backed by Iran,

Worldwide Jihad is probably a Shiite group, where as Hamas is Sunni.

[oberliner]

11. Gotcha

But isn't Hamas backed by Iran anyway?

[Idealism]

13. Up until this conflict, not much

The Grad rockets were the only thing Hamas got from Iran, other than an estimated $3 million per year, but in the grand scheme of things that is pretty nominal. Most of Hamas' rockets are Qassam-3's, home made in Gaza using simple fertilizer (which lends to the huge failure rate of detonation).

Iran can be said to "back" them in the literal sense, but the ties are not as strong as the media would lead you to believe.

[Recursion]

15. No

But that doesn't keep the media from trumpeting baseless claims that it is.

[EFerrari]

7. So, Hamas is only in charge of Gaza when it suits the IDF.

[azurnoir]

8. And according to the article

it was an Iranian group somehow associated with al Qaida would you fancy that, guess making sure all the bases were covered

[bemildred]

12. Well, you gotta wonder how they know all this stuff.

All so quick, when on the other hand there seems to be a big mystery as to what sort of munitions they used to shell and bomb Gaza with. Apparently it is a lot easier to know all this stuff about Iran, Hamas, etc. etc. than about their own activities.

[azurnoir]

14. Intelligence, military intelligence of course n/t

[Tripmann]

16. When you're collectively punishing a population,

you aren't targetting the perpretrators anyway. So why would, all of a sudden, it matter whether it was Hamas or not?

Horrible