New details of botched Israeli raid
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The small town of Abassan in the Gaza Strip is a tough place to infiltrate — everyone knows everyone else and outsiders passing through quickly attract attention. So when strangers drove through town, suspicious Hamas security men stopped the van and questioned those inside.
The answers didn’t add up.
With their covers about to be blown, the Israeli undercover forces inside the vehicle opened fire, setting off a fierce battle that left eight people dead and triggered a brief but intense round of crossborder fighting.
A month after the exchange, the raid remains clouded in mystery. The Israeli army has kept mum, while Hamas officials have declined to comment publicly as they investigate the incident. With each side protective of its secrets, and possibly keen to spread disinformation, the full story may never be known.
But based on interviews with Hamas officials, a picture is emerging of a carefully planned Israeli intelligence operation in which agents posing as Palestinian aid workers may have gone undetected for up to two weeks before it went awry. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity, citing a Hamas gag order.
In the meantime, Hamas has tightened security in Gaza and is questioning foreign visitors such as journalists and aid workers; it has also sentenced six alleged collaborators to death.
Israel and Hamas are bitter enemies that have fought three wars since the Islamic militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007 from the rival Palestinian Authority. Israel and Egypt have blockaded Gaza by air, land and sea since the takeover.
Sending an undercover unit into Gaza would be complicated and risky. With Gaza fenced off, the border area is closely watched by Hamas. Only a handful of crossings operate. Parachuting in or bursting through the border would almost certainly be detected.
It remains unclear what the Israeli team did inside Gaza. One official said they posed as aid workers, pretending to move disabled people to hospitals in a van. The team had a wheelchair, along with a member disguised as a disabled woman. They visited many houses and even rented an apartment in Gaza City, he said.
The scheme began to unravel when the team made its way to Abassan. Suspicious residents alerted Hamas security, which stopped their van.
According to various accounts, the situation deteriorated when Commander Nour Baraka arrived and began asking more questions. When he ordered their detention for further questioning, the Israeli team opened fire and killed him. As the team fled, Hamas security men fired back, apparently killing the Israeli commander.