It has been cleared for publication that the Israeli Navy successfully thwarted a weapons smuggling attempt into the Gaza Strip.
According to IDF Commander of Southern Naval Operations Col. Amir Gutman, “Over the last several weeks, troops from the 916 Squadron and the Snapir Unit thwarted a smuggling attempt from off the coast of the northern Sinai into the Gaza Strip. The (Israeli) naval observers directed the troops to the vessel suspected of smuggling. Following a short pursuit, the vessel was stopped with two terror operatives aboard.”
Col. Gutman also disclosed that “during an investigation of the terror operatives, it has been revealed that they intended to smuggle weapons that were meant to be used by the naval commando unit of Hamas. One of the suspects is a senior smuggler who has worked with several terror organizations. His apprehension constitutes a significant operational achievement for us (Israel) and a severe blow for the naval commando unit of Hamas.”
“Israel’s Naval force invests substantial operational and intelligence efforts in order to thwart the armament of the Hamas terror organization in the Gaza Strip,” stressed the IDF leader.
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit informed TV7 that “the intelligence and operational activity was conducted following joint operational and intelligence efforts of the Israeli Navy and the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet) along with the IDF Intelligence Directorate.”
It further highlighted that “this operation joins a series of thwarting activities intended to prevent the armament plans of the Hamas terror organization in the Gaza Strip, degrade their force generation capabilities and is part of the ongoing effort to thwart terrorist activity of any kind against Israeli civilians.”