Dubai Police Chief '99%' Sure Israel's Mossad Killed Hamas Militant

In what has become a riveting story of international intrigue, Dubai's police chief said he was virtually certain Mossad, Israel's intelligence service, was behind the killing of a Hamas military commander in a luxury hotel there last month.

The killing of Mahmoud al Mabhouh by 11 men who it was later learned used the passport information of British, Irish, German and French nationals to enter and exit Dubai has spawned fierce controversy in and out of Israel which is being asked by other nations for an explanation.

A snippet from report in The National, the English-language newspaper in Abu Dhabi, on the press conference by Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim, Dubai's police chief.

"Our investigations reveal that Mossad is involved in the murder of al Mabhouh. It is 99 per cent, if not 100 per cent that Mossad is standing behind the murder," said Gen Tamim.

The evidences that Dubai Police have shows a clear link between the suspects and people with a close connection to Israel, according to Gen Tamim. However, he did not disclose what the evidences were.

The evidences that Dubai Police have shows a clear link between the suspects and people with a close connection to Israel, according to Gen Tamim. However, he did not disclose what the evidences were.

Earlier Gen Tamim had said if it is proven that Mossad is responsible for the killing of al Mabhouh "Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, will be the first to be wanted for justice as he would have been the one who signed the decision to kill [Mahmoud] al Mabhouh in Dubai' and that an arrest warrant will be issued against him.

However, today Gen Tamim declined to comment on whether the UAE authorities is to issue an arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu.

Meanwhile, the British and Irish governments called in the Israeli diplomats to their nations to demand an explanation.

As BBC reports:

The British and Irish governments have called in their Israeli ambassadors over the use of fake passports by the alleged killers of a Hamas commander...

After the meeting, which lasted 20 minutes, the ambassador said he was "unable to add additional information".

The meeting, between Israeli Ambassador Ron Prosor and Sir Peter Ricketts, head of the UK's diplomatic service, follows a growing international row over the alleged use of bogus passports by the killers.

Meanwhile in Ireland, Israeli Ambassador Zion Evrony also insisted he knew nothing about the killing of the Hamas commander.

Conservative leader David Cameron had called for Israel's ambassador to the UK to be asked "some pretty tough questions".

If there was proof Israel had used British passports... relations between the UK and Israel would be in a crisis.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown ordered an inquiry into the passports, which bear the names of six British-Israelis who are not the men pictured.

But Israel's foreign minister has said there is no proof its secret service, Mossad, was involved.

Not all the negative action has come from outside Israel. Some has come from inside.

Gideon Levy, a correspondent for Haaretz, the Israeli newspaper, observes that even if the operation many are blaming on Mossad had worked exactly the way it should have, what Israel would have achieved is a Hamas even more bent on its destruction than existed before.

A snippet:

Let's suppose the Dubai assassination project had worked out well. Mahmoud al-Mabhouh would have received his kiss of death, the assassins would have returned safe and sound to their bases, and no Israeli would have run into identity complications. And then? Mahmoud's place would have been taken by Mohammed, who also would have tried to kill Israeli soldiers and smuggle Iranian arms into Gaza. Perhaps the heir would even outperform his predecessor, as has happened in several previous liquidations.

We eliminated Abbas al-Musawi? Well done, Israel Defense Forces. We got Hassan Nasrallah. We killed Ahmed Yassin? Well done, Shin Bet security service. We got a Hamas many times stronger. Abu Jihad was eliminated? Well done to the Sayeret Matkal special forces unit - of course, according to foreign news reports. We killed a potential partner, relatively moderate and charismatic. As a bonus, we got revenge attacks like those after "the Engineer" Yihyeh Ayash was slain. We also got the danger hovering over every Israeli and Jew in the world each anniversary of the assassination of Imad Mughniyeh, which was also blamed on Israel.