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Palestinians carrying the body of Ahmad Sanakra during his funeral near Nablus on Friday. (Reuters)
Last update - 07:00 19/01/2008
Border Police arrest knife-wielding Palestinian in West Bank
By Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff and Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondents
Tags: Israel, Islamic Jihad, Jenin 

Border Policemen arrested a knife-wielding Palestinian who allegedly tried to stab one of them near the West Bank settlement of Ma'aleh Adumim on Friday. None of the policemen were injured in the incident, and the suspect was taken into custody for questioning.

A crack undercover unit of the Israel Defense Forces killed a senior member of the Fatah-affiliated Tanzim militant group in the West Bank early Friday, according to Army Radio.

In a pre-dawn raid Friday morning, soldiers from the elite Duvdevan ("Cherry") unit operating in the Balata refugee camp near the city of Nablus killed Ahmad Sanakra, 24, who served as the head of the Tanzim in Balata. In addition, Sanakra, who had been on Israel's wanted list for several years but repeatedly eluded capture, helped assemble bombs and explosives belts, some of which were found by IDF troops during prior operations.
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Army Radio reported that Sanakra took refuge in his home with four other wanted Palestinians. After an exchange of gunfire with IDF troops, Sanakra was killed and the Palestinians were taken into custody.

The terror cell which he commanded was responsible for planning attacks deep inside Israel through the use of explosives. Sanakra was known to maintain contact via liaison with Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Shi'ite group which directed and provided funds for the cell's activities.

Following Duvdevan's successful operation, the IDF's West Bank division commander, Brigadier-General Noam Tibon, paid a visit to the soldiers.

Tibon noted that Sanakra is the second senior militant killed by the same unit in the last 48 hours. Islamic Jihad's top military commander in the West Bank, Walid al-Obeidi, was killed early Wednesday morning during an IDF raid in a village near Jenin.

"By virtue of your actions, the citizens of Israel can sleep well," Tibon told the soldiers. "In the last three days, you've managed to close the circle on suspects wanted by Israel for a number of years."

In response to the killing of al-Obeidi, the militant group took part in a barrage of at least 28 Qassam rockets fired at southern Israel on Wednesday morning, causing damage to local kibbutzim. Several people were treated for shock.

The special forces entered Qabatiya, south of Jenin, in the early morning hours and surrounded the home in which the 44-year-old militant leader was hiding.

A gun battle broke out, and al-Obeidi eventually exited the home and opened fire on the special forces, who returned fire, killing him. Al-Obeidi had been wanted by Israel for years.

Four additional militants were with al-Obeidi at the time, two of whom were wounded in the exchange of fire and taken to Haemek Hospital in Afula for treatment. The remaining two militants were taken into custody by the IDF.

Al-Obeidi, a resident of the nearby village of Burkin, had been considered one of the more senior militants on Israel's wanted list since 2002. The defense establishment holds Al-Obeidi responsible for a series of terrorist attacks, including a suicide bombing at a Tel Aviv shawarma stand in April 2006 that killed 11 people.

Al-Obeidi was also responsible for numerous attempts to carry out suicide bombings in Israel during the Second Intifada. One of the bombers dispatched by Obeidi was captured by security services on Route 1, between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Later Wednesday, Palestinian terrorists opened fire on the Jewish settlement in the West Bank city of Hebron. The gunshots damaged children's rooms in two homes in the area, but caused no injuries. The assailants were able to flee the scene.


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      1.   courageous commander!!! Not. 08:15  |  Mark Katzman 16/01/08
      2.   Israeli assasination brough Nasrallah to power 08:41  |  Natallie Durson 16/01/08
      3.   good job - no let up 08:48  |  vik 16/01/08
      4.   Top Jihadi 09:06  |  Tom Schmelzer 16/01/08
      5.   ANOTHER CHILD OF UNDER 45 KILLED 09:10  |  Robert 16/01/08
      6.   #5 Robert -love it 09:23  |  Adrian de Klerk 16/01/08
      7.   Its a killing spree! What better way to make peace? 09:28  |  Scott Katz 16/01/08
      8.   A Word To Dutch 09:31  |  Doris Cadigan 16/01/08
      9.   In the end, 09:40  |  David Nigel Braham 16/01/08
      10.   Has assassination ever achieved anything 09:47  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      11.   welldone to Fayyad&Abass 09:52  |  Nabulsi 16/01/08
      12.   Scott Katz 09:59  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 16/01/08
      13.   # 10 Clickfool.............runaway train, indeed.! 10:19  |  Stephen. 16/01/08
      14.   keep hitting them till they recognize the jewish state 10:24  |  coffe bob 16/01/08
      15.   TO CLICKFOOL #10 10:24  |  dovale 16/01/08
      16.   ASSASSINATION ACHIEVES NOTHING POWER CUTS ARE BETTER 10:27  |  Lou Knee 16/01/08
      17.   # 2 Natallie. There are plenty more in the wings. 10:27  |  Stephen. 16/01/08
      18.   @Durson 10:32  |  Ralph 16/01/08
      19.   to Scott Katz # 7 10:33  |  dovale 16/01/08
      20.   justice served! and a response to scott katz 10:33  |  Michelle 16/01/08
      21.   40TH KILLING SEASON HAD BEGUN 10:44  |  indrajaya 16/01/08
      22.   For Dovale # 13 10:55  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      23.   In order for Liberman tostay minister 10:59  |  REFUGEE 16/01/08
      24.   Provocative Israeli killing to cover broken promises to Bush 11:01  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      25.   To Indraya #21 11:01  |  dovale 16/01/08
      26.   With a little help from our friends 11:04  |  MarkC 16/01/08
      27.   INDRAJAYA.Upset that Israel stops jihadists.Your Jihad season is 11:07  |  PETER SM 16/01/08
      28.   Clickfool #10 Yes, it has!! 11:07  |  MarkC 16/01/08
      29.   Natalie 11:08  |  Aby 16/01/08
      30.   Michelle #10 good point 11:11  |  MarkC 16/01/08
      31.   SUICIDE BOMBING Israeli restaurants etc is not the same free kick 11:51  |  PETER SM 16/01/08
      32.   Nabulsi#11 12:09  |  Sarah 16/01/08
      33.   # 40 Indy. J dams for Saudi Arabia. Why?? 12:43  |  Stephen. 16/01/08
      34.   More Terrified Terrorists !! 12:44  |  Barry 16/01/08
      35.   The Arabs complain about tough times now... 12:44  |  Denise Thompson 16/01/08
      36.   Barren policy 12:47  |  Murray 16/01/08
      37.   Wonderful!! I read where John Howard, PM of Australia 13:40  |  Petra 16/01/08
      38.   #7 BETTER THEM THAN US 13:32  |  Petra 16/01/08
      39.   Clickfool #11 13:48  |  TonyL 16/01/08
      40.   Murray flurry, 14:02  |  Iz Ray Leigh 16/01/08
      41.   Indrajaya Lectures on Colonialsim. From Colonialist Indonesia !! 14:53  |  Craig 16/01/08
      42.   For Mark C # 28 14:55  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      43.   to the Israeli army 15:00  |  Jose Alberto Beltran 16/01/08
      44.   For Tony L, an optimist # 39 15:03  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      45.   sucide bombing to click no 42 15:06  |  Tina 16/01/08
      46.   No Considerations Nor Political Concessions to Arab -Jihad Terror 15:10  |  Joseph E . 16/01/08
      47.   Peace with continued killings, good job Israel! 15:10  |  Joe 16/01/08
      48.   to # 38 15:11  |  al araby 16/01/08
      49.   Regarding Arab peacemaking, it gives one pause... 15:14  |  Denise Thompson 16/01/08
      50.   Sorry, my mistake 15:15  |  Murray 16/01/08
      51.   # 11 Nabulsi...keywords 15:17  |  Lynn 16/01/08
      52.   To the Ecuadorian # 43 15:18  |  arab 16/01/08
      53.   natalie durson, clikfool one q? 15:19  |  Gabriel 16/01/08
      54.   Clickfool is sad! 15:26  |  DR 16/01/08
      55.   Indy....Hamas isn`t looking too optimistic 15:26  |  Lynn 16/01/08
      56.   great news but what took the shin bet so long 15:26  |  yirmiyahu 16/01/08
      57.   To José Alberto Beltrán# 43: ? Gracias hermano ! 15:26  |  Mijal Schlesinger 16/01/08
      58.   # 37 Petra..on John Howard 15:28  |  Lynn 16/01/08
      59.   Nasrallah should be next 15:30  |  Joe 16/01/08
      60.   # 7 Scott Katz..."thousands killed in the intifada" 15:34  |  Lynn 16/01/08
      61.   For Tina, on "negative propaganda" # 45 15:37  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      62.   For Gabriel # 53 15:48  |  Clickfool 16/01/08
      63.   "nasrallah is next" 15:48  |  meir dagan 16/01/08
      64.   Violence will bring violence 15:50  |  V 16/01/08
      65.   Before there was Israel 16:14  |  Joe 16/01/08
      66.   Before ther was Israel 16:17  |  Joe 16/01/08
      67.   to # 53 the Arab, this land is not yours 16:21  |  Muhtar abu zaid 16/01/08
      68.   # 41, CRAIG F (a.k.a PETER SM) 16:24  |  indrajaya 16/01/08
      69.   clickfools butchers 16:41  |  Barry 16/01/08
      70.   IDF Death Squads at it again... 17:04  |  POP 16/01/08