this (Sunday) morning, it was permitted to publish that the Shin Bet efforts succeeded in interrupting an attempt to create a terrorist squad in Ramallah, which planned to carry out a large attack against a target in Israeli territory. The squad was directed by foreign officials, and more precisely, Hamas operatives located in Turkey (where there is a strong Palestinian terrorist organization infrastructure). The foreign officials chose a target and dealt with the transfer of funds to the elected operatives, while the organization on the ground was on the shoulders of Mahmoud Angac, a resident of a Palestinian village in the Binyamin region, who recruited a number of activists studying at Bir Zeit University in the nearby Ramallah. The squad called itself the “Katla Islamia” and advanced its preparations for the planned attack.
However, the story of the Katla squad came to an early end after a successful raid by the police ‘Gidonim’ Corps, with the help of the IDF and with the intelligence support of the Shin Bet. The forces arrested the operatives in the squad and raided their apartment, where they confiscated weapons, many funds, as well as detailed documents containing extensive intelligence and technical details. An indictment is expected to be presented to the squad members soon, and at the end of their trial, the five members will face long prison terms.
The capture of the cell constitutes another success of the Shin Bet and the defense establishment in a series of acts against terrorist cells directed in the Palestinian Authority territories by external elements. The threat is not only to Palestinians, but also to Israeli residents who do not understand the consequences of their actions – such as the link that worked to stir up social chaos in Beit Shemesh with Iranian guidance, which was revealed last week. The effort against terrorism depends on the shoulders of the security establishment, but responsibility is also required on our part, the normal citizens.
