World: Al Qaeda claims Israel attack link
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, 30 December 2005 |
|
In what may be a sign that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's terror group is expanding its operations, Al Qaeda in Iraq has posted a statement claiming responsibility for firing missiles from Lebanon into northern Israel earlier this week.
The statement, posted Thursday on Web sites used previously by al Qaeda in Iraq, cannot be independently verified by CNN.
The three rockets were fired late Tuesday from Lebanon into the Israeli
town of Kiryat Shimona. The attack resulted in minor damage and no
casualties.
However, the Al Qaeda in Iraq statement called the attack a success.
"After days of monitoring and surveillance, ... a lion launched 10 Grad
(Russian) missiles ... from the Muslims' lands in Lebanon on selected
targets in the northern part of the Jewish state," the statement said.
"The brothers had accomplished the attack successfully, exactly as they
designed it."
It is not clear why Al Qaeda in Iraq -- a Sunni Arab terror group that
has launched attacks against Shiite targets inside Iraq -- would be
operating in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah frequently fires rockets
across the border into Israel. Hezbollah has strong ties with Iran, a
Shiite country.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office had no comment on the
statement, which was posted on several Web sites used previously for
similar claims of responsibility by al Qaeda in Iraq.
The Israeli military said it held Lebanon's government responsible for
not dismantling terror groups operating within its borders. Hours after
Tuesday's strike, Israeli warplanes dropped missiles on a terrorist
training camp near Beirut, run by the Popular Front for the Liberation
of Palestine.
Al Qaeda in Iraq has claimed responsibility for two other attacks
outside of Iraq: last month's deadly hotel attacks in Amman, Jordan,
and a rocket attack in August that targeted but missed two U.S.
warships in the Jordanian port of Aqaba
Jordanian officials have said the group also carried out an attack on Jordan's intelligence agency.
Source: CNN
SiberNews
|
Subscribe to this comment's feed
