Ex-Mossad chief: Rantisi strike is blow to Hamas

Jerusalem Post ^ | 4/17/04

[LibWhacker]

Former Mossad chief MK Danny Yatom (Labor) said Abdel Aziz Rantisi's killing was another blow to Hamas following the death of Shiekh Ahmed Yassin.

"Hamas' strength is its line of leaders, this is what Israel is targeting. We have no choice but to fight to the death with a group like Hamas, which wants the destruction of Israel," Yatom said.

Referring to Hamas leader Khaled Mashal, who is the de facto leader of the Islamic terrorist group and who is receiving sanctuary in Damascus, Yatom said Mashal "is the number one man in the Hamas." Yatom was the head of the Mossad during the 1997 botched assassination attempt on Mashaal in Amman, Jordan, which led to the capture of two Mossad agents and the release of Yassin from Israeli prison.

"Even when we tried to kill him in Jordan, he was their top leader. I suspect that the Hamas leadership will continue to operate from Damascus. The heads of Hamas are hiding and spending more time trying to find out who are the Israeli agents in their ranks, than trying to carry out attacks," Yatom said, adding, "Mashaal is the number one man in Hamas. He was always on the top of our list. He remains on the list."

"What happened today was an intelligence coup of the highest order," Yatom told Israel Radio.

[LibWhacker]

Referring to Hamas leader Khaled Mashal, who is the de facto leader of the Islamic terrorist group and who is receiving sanctuary in Damascus . . .

Never heard of this Mashal before. And I thought "we" were getting Hamas' big cheese in taking out Yassin and Rantisi. Gotta take out Syria. Turn Israel loose, Mr. President. We can take down Iran.

[Agnes Heep]

I just got the news about Rantisi. This is great policy, in my opinion--to head Hamas is certain death. That's the only effective way of dealing with terror.

[KC_for_Freedom]

Turn Israel loose, Mr. President. We can take down Iran.

This thought crossed my mind just today. When are the new troops gonna be deployed?

[sgtbono2002]

If you arrest terrorists you will have the do-gooder liberals complaining because dont have room service in their prison cell ,you have stinking lawyers who place money above common sense abnd defend thse murdering buttheads, Kill them and the downside is you have these lawyers and do-gooders crying. If you call that a downside.

[txzman]

If things don't get better, the dogs will get 'loosed'. There will be no other choice.

[LibWhacker]

I was late getting the news, too. But it made my day when I heard it! :-)

I agree with you about taking out the leaders. It's the only way to go.

Incidentally, I remember back in the 60s, the US was real strict with its anti-Castro groups. You could be anti-Casto if it suited you. But you could not under any circumstances carry out raids or any other violent act in Cuba. The reasoning was that such violence could legitimately be viewed as act of war by America.

What I want to know is what is so different now? Syria can give sanctuary to groups that attack Israel and Israel is supposed to take it? Or Syria can give sanctuary to groups that attack our own troops in Iraq, and we don't declare war Syria? Same thing with Iran. In both cases the violence is not only condoned, but is state sponsored, to boot! I hate double standards.

[Capriole]

And also, now the Palestinians are going to be, like, really mad! We don't want that! They might get violent!

[RightOnTheLeftCoast]

"Ex-Mossad chief: Rantisi strike is blow to Hamas"

With a tip of the hat to James Taranto's wonderful Best of the Web Today, what would we do without ex-Mossad chiefs?

[LibWhacker]

I don't know, but it seems like we're going to need a whole lot more troops, doesn't it? Not just a few brigades. OTOH, one good thing about it is . . . If Iran and Syria were busy fighting off invasions, they'd be too busy to meddle in Iraq!

[chilepepper]

my crocodile is sobbing profusely...

[LibWhacker]

[Travis McGee]

The heads of Hamas are hiding and spending more time trying to find out who are the Israeli agents in their ranks, than trying to carry out attacks," Yatom said,

That's the real message here, delivered to Hamas: you are riddled with our spies, that's how we located Rantisi. Now, commence devouring yourselves to discover who the spies are, (if any.)

[cksharks]

Are you planning on joining? They are stretched kinda thin about now.

[LibWhacker]

. . . commence devouring yourselves . . .

Be interesting to know how many "innocent" Hamas members have been killed by Hamas just on the suspicion they were spies. Bet it's a lot, hehehehe.

[chilepepper]

Awesome crocodile!

[goldstategop]

They will reach into Syria too. I wouldn't count on the overseas Hamas' leadership having sanctuary from being hunted down by the Mossad. Their should be no immunity for terrorists wherever they are. The Hamas and the PLO should be liquidated in its entirety to bring about peace in the Middle East.

[Bismarck]

I have a better solution. There's a very unhappy Kurdish minority in Northern Iran. Why don't we encourage the creation of Kurdistan? An Iranian civil war would be the best way to get rid of the Ayatollahs...

[LibWhacker]

Hmmm . . . I wonder how much Iranian territory the Kurds would demand in the creation of Kurdistan?

I've always liked the three-state solution in Iraq: Kurds in the North, Sunnis the middle, Shiites the South. These artificial unions imposed with little thought from without just don't work in that part of the world. Besides, with me, it's a divide and conquer thing. :-)

[LibWhacker]

Yep . . . Gotta take out the whole state of Syria, too, imo. It's almost like Hamas is Syria's arm, which it may or may not share with the Palestinians.

[Agnes Heep]

What I want to know is what is so different now? Syria can give sanctuary to groups that attack Israel and Israel is supposed to take it? Or Syria can give sanctuary to groups that attack our own troops in Iraq, and we don't declare war Syria? Same thing with Iran. In both cases the violence is not only condoned, but is state sponsored, to boot! I hate double standards.

You and me both!