Was a Senior Hamas Commander Killed in the Sinai Peninsula?

Was a Senior Hamas Commander Killed in the Sinai Peninsula?

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Intelligence Bulletin

Information Date: August 10, 2013              

Event Date: August 9, 2013

Information Item: Senior Hamas Commander killed in Sinai Peninsula?

Information Platform: Arab Media

Source: Varied

Source Reliability: Unknown

Spring: Unknown

Spring Reliability: Unknown

Information Validity: Not confirmed

Relevant information:

On August 9, 2013 a group of Jihadist militants were killed in an air raid in the area of Al-Arish in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula. Apparently the group was finalizing preparations to launch rocket attacks probably targeting Israeli territory. Reports on Arab media platforms – though denied by formal Egyptian spokespersons – argue that the air raid was carried out by an Israeli drone and was coordinated with the Egyptian army who is engaged these very days in a massive military campaign against Jihadist groups in the center and northern part of the Sinai Peninsula.

The exact circumstances of the air raid and the identity of the factors involved in the attack are not the only thing which is unclear; the number of fatalities caused by the attack is unclear as well. A Jihadist group named Jama’at Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis announced that four of its members were killed in the air raid. However, reports argue that five people were killed in the attack. According to some sources, the fifth person was killed while driving a motorcycle. One unknown source, argues that the fifth person killed was a senior Hamas militant named Iman Nofel.

Iman Nofel, a senior Hamas military Commander in the Gaza Strip, was arrested by the Egyptian authorities in 2008 for his part in demolishing the border fence between Gaza and Egypt. In January 2011, Nofel together with other militants, escaped from jail back into the Gaza Strip following a bold military operation conducted by Jihadist groups. Nofel’s troubled relations with the Egyptians did not end there. In August 2012 an Egyptian military post located in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula near the Gaza Strip on the Israeli-Egyptian border was attacked, and sixteen Egyptian border patrol members were killed. Accumulating information indicates that the attack was conducted by Jihadist groups with the practical support and participation of Jihadist militants from the Gaza Strip, some of them associated with Hamas. (On that matter read my article “The Sinai Peninsula: A Growing Strategic Threat“, August 2012) Egypt claims that Nofel was involved in the incident – yet he denied the accusation.

The Assessment:

Thus far the information regarding the killing of Iman Nofel is unconfirmed. As of now no other information on that matter has been uncovered. Reviewing Hamas’ different web sites as well as other possible relevant sources of information resulted in no information on that matter.

End Intelligence Bulletin

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Avi Melamed
Avi Melamedhttps://insidethemiddle-east.com
Avi Melamed is an expert on current affairs in the Arab & Muslim World and their impact on Israel & the Middle East. A former Israeli Intelligence Official & Senior Official on Arab Affairs, Fluent in Arabic, English, and Hebrew, he has held high-risk Government, Senior Advisory, Intelligence & Counter-Terrorist intelligence positions in Arab cities & communities - often in very sensitive times - on behalf of Israeli Government agencies. He is the Founder & CEO of Inside the Middle East | Intelligence Perspectives - an apolitical non-partisan curriculum using intelligence methodology to examine the Middle East. As an Author, Educator, Expert, and Strategic Intelligence Analyst, Avi provides Intelligence Analysis, Briefings, and Geopolitical Tours to diplomats, Israeli and foreign policymakers, global media outlets, and a wide variety of international businesses, organizations, and private clients on a range of Israel and Middle East Affairs.

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