By Prashanth Parameswaran
An old claim resurfaces with some new evidence.
Earlier this week, an Israeli newspaper cited allegations by the country’s internal security service that the Palestinian militant group Hamas was training undercover operatives in Malaysia for attacks.
According to the report by Haaretz, Shin Bet had produced detailed evidence about how Hamas men in Malaysia actively recruited Palestinians students studying there for military training in an indictment filed last month. Recruiters allegedly put students through initial ideological preparation that includes joining the Muslim Brotherhood and local Palestinian charities before they undergo military training. These operatives are then deployed in various roles, including setting up military networks in the West Bank, acting as messengers and carrying out secret fund transfers for Hamas.
The allegation itself is not new. Last year, Israel claimed that a member of Hamas had trained in Malaysia to paraglide into Israeli territory to carry out murders and kidnapping. Malaysia, a Muslim-majority nation which does not have diplomatic relations with Israel and has often expressed support for the Palestinian cause, denied this allegation at the time. However, this is the first time that Shin Bet has offered more details in court papers to back up that earlier assertion.
Hamas has reportedly dismissed the recent accusation as baseless.
Read the full story at The Diplomat