Israel Matzav

Is there a plastic surgeon in the house?

What do you do if you need to find someone and you have their pictures with someone else's name? If you're Interpol, you put the pictures and the names on the Internet, tell people that only the pictures are real (are they?) and then hope that the group that liquidated the target - Mahmoud al-Mabhouh - doesn't include a plastic surgeon.

The individuals who were charged by Dubai police as responsible for the killing of Hamas commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouhhttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20498788 were tagged with "Red Notices," according to the Interpol's official website.

The website also specifies that Interpol chose to publish the photos of the suspected assassins since the identities the perpetrators allegedly used were fake, using fraudulent passports to aid them in accomplishing their aim.

Oh, and now they're claiming they have retinal scans.

According to Palestinian news agency Ma'an, Dubai police said Wednesday that they hold retinal scans of the suspected assassins, which they plan to publish through international police intelligence service Interpol.

Airport officials carried out routine retinal scans on 11 suspects sought by Dubai when they entered the country in the days before the hit. An unnamed Dubai official said on Thursday that the investigation has now widened, with police seeking a further seven members of the assassination team - making 18 in all.

A retinal scan requires that the person being scanned stand still for 10-15 seconds and costs about $220. I found it hard to believe that the government of the United Arab Emirates routinely scans every person who arrives at the airport in Dubai. But apparently they do. Just one problem: The retinal scans don't match the suspects' names.

Hmmm.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:56 AM