Last update - 00:00 17/01/2008
Security forces thwart Jihad plan to bomb T.A.-Jerusalem railroad
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent, and Reuters
Security forces thwarted an Islamic Jihad cell's plan to place a bomb on the railroad tracks leading from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, according to information made public Thursday.
The members of the cell were captured in a joint operation by the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security service approximately one month ago near Bethlehem. The operation also uncovered the cell's explosives lab.
An Islamic Jihad leader in Ramallah said the group was not aware of any such raid targeting its members in the area.
The militants admitted under questioning that they were planning terrorist attacks against Israel, including placing a bomb on the tracks at their closest point to Bethlehem, near the Palestinian village of Batir.
All four of the militants are in their twenties. The explosives lab as found in the home of 28-year-old Nahlin resident Razek Jadeh.
An additional suspect is also from Nahlin, while the remaining two are Batir residents. The militants are also suspected among other things of planning to carry out roadside bombings against Israeli cars in the West Bank.
In addition, they planned an attack that would include bombing an IDF jeep, throwing improvised grenades and stealing the soldiers' weapons.
The investigation also revealed that the suspects learned to make bombs via the internet.
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