TEL AVIV Ñ Israel has assassinated a Palestinian regarded as the
leading planner of Islamic suicide bombers in what the military proclaimed an intelligence victory.
Israeli troops killed Islamic Jihad military leader Iyad Sawalha on
early Saturday in the northern West Bank city of Jenin. Military sources
said a unit from the elite Golani brigade found Sawalha and his wife in a
cave underneath a house.
Sawalah reportedly fired his weapon and hurled a grenade. The
Israeli force then cut him down in a hail of gunfire.
The 28-year-old Sawalha, known as 'the engineer', was being held responsible for the deaths
of at least 31 Israelis. He planned a series of suicide bombings over the
last four months in Israel, Middle East Newsline reported.
Sawalha also helped plan suicide attacks by the ruling Fatah movement,
led by Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. Arafat condemned the
Israeli killing of Sawalha as a "crime."
The latest bombing was near the Israeli town of Karkour last month when
a
car filled with explosives rammed into a passenger bus. Seventeen people
were killed.
Military sources said Sawalha was the target of an intense manhunt for
the last 16 days. They said the discovery of Sawalha was a major
intelligence success.
Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Sawalha had planned to launch
a series of suicide missions in Israel over the next few days. Officials
said Israeli authorities have received an alert of up to 50 suicide attacks
against Israel.
