Plot to Assassinate Lieberman Thwarted

YERUSHALAYIM (Hamodia Staff) —

Israeli security forces have prevented a plot to assassinate Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, The Jerusalem Post reported on Thursday night.

Three Palestinians were indicted for conspiring to buy a rocket propelled grenade launcher (RPG) with which to kill Lieberman. The indictment was filed on Tuesday in an IDF Military Court, though no public announcement has yet been issued.

The accused, Ibrahim el-Zir, Ziad el-Zir and Anans  Bech, all from the village of Harmala, allegedly planned the assassination in mid-August as a way to try to stop Operation Protective Edge.

Aside from his outspokenness about the Palestinian problem, Lieberman was chosen as a target due to the proximity of Harmala to the minister’s home in Nokdim, according to the indictment.

The cell was arrested in mid-August by security forces surrounding the events of Ibrahim allegedly trying to purchase the RPG and has had extended periods of interrogation.

Meanwhile, uncertainty over the motivation in a roadway incident in which three IDF soldiers were injured two weeks ago in Gush Etzion ended on Thursday when the Arab driver admitted that it was a terrorist attack.

It emerged under interrogation that the driver is a Hamas terrorist, 23-year-old Hamam Jamal Badawi Masalmeh, from Beit Awwa in the Chevron region.

In the attack, one soldier was seriously wounded, and another two suffered moderate wounds.

Masalmeh also admitted to planning other attacks before he was arrested, and reconstructed the car attack for security forces.

At the outset of the investigation, Masalmeh tried to cover up the attack as being a traffic accident, and the IDF had accepted the story, at least publicly.

Roni Aharoni, whose son Yehonatan was seriously wounded in the incident, told Arutz Sheva his son had told him in hospital immediately after the attack that he was certain the driver had aimed for them, and that he even sped up as he veered towards the group.

Aharoni accused political leaders of a cover up, in order to deflect public criticism over spiraling Arab violence.

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