Israel Matzav

Attack on Israeli tourists in Cyprus thwarted

An attack on Israeli tourists in Cyprus was apparently thwarted with the arrest last week of a Lebanese national carrying a Swedish passport, it was reported on Saturday.

The 24-year-old man, thought to be a Swedish passport holder of Lebanese extraction, was arrested on July 7 and was being detained following remand hearings held behind closed doors, Sigma TV reported. He has not been charged with any offense.

Police spokesman Andreas Angelides said: "We can confirm the arrest of a 24-year-old foreign national for specific, serious offenses, and who is in custody by order of the court."

It was not the first time that a Lebanese-Swedish national has been accused of plotting attacks against Israeli targets. In January, Thai authorities arrested Hussein Idris, a Lebanese-Swedish national together with another Lebanese man on suspicion that they were plotting a series of bomb attacks against Israeli targets in Bangkok.

Due to the attacks, Israeli diplomats have been on high alert amid predictions that Hezbollah is trying to avenge the assassination in 2008 of its military commander Imad Mughniyeh, which it attributes to the Mossad.

Sigma TV's web portal reported the man had been tracking the movement of Israeli tourists on the island, while Cypriot newspaper Phileleftheros said he was attempting to pinpoint areas frequented by Israeli tourists and the buses they used.

as you might imagine, Cyprus is now a very popular tourist destination for Israelis since we don't go to Turkey anymore. It's about an hour and a half flight from here.

Labels: Cyprus, Islamic terrorism

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:45 AM