December 19th, 2007

IDF SPOKESPERSON ANNOUNCEMENT

Terrorist who planned mass terror attack in Israel arrested

This morning, in a joint IDF and ISA operation, Sami salid Rashid Zayud, an
Islamic Jihad terrorist who planned the attempted mass terror attack on the
Israeli home front in September 2002 was arrested. He was arrested in the
village of Silat Al Harithiya, southwest of Jenin. Zayud planned to explode
a vehicle carrying 400kg of explosives adjacent to a residential building,
in order to kill as many of the residents as possible.

The terror attack was thwarted when the vehicle was stopped at a Border
Police checkpoint near Givat Ada. According to security assessments, the
terrorists came from the area of Jenin and infiltrated into the Israeli home
front in the Wadi Ara region.

During the operation today, IDF forces fired and identified hitting Zayud.
He was taken to hospital for medical treatment.

The Islamic Jihad in Northern Samaria, which was responsible for the
attempted terrorist attack, coordinates the terror activity in the cities of
Jenin and Tulkarm. It has carried out many suicide bombing attacks in the
Israeli home front, killing dozens of Israeli civilians and injuring
hundreds.

In IDF activity in 2007, 9 terror operatives from the Islamic Jihad in
Northern Samaria were killed and 11 arrested.

The IDF and ISA are continuing the ongoing battle with the terror
organizations including the Islamic Jihad in order to prevent terror attacks
in the Israeli home front. The IDF and ISA will continue to operate against
the Islamic Jihad in Northern Samaria to prevent it from recovering and to
guarantee the security of the state of Israel.

The main terror attacks carried out by the Islamic Jihad in Northern Samaria
in the recent years:
25.02.05 - A suicide bombing at the "Stage" club in Tel Aviv- 5 people
killed
12.07.05 - A suicide bombing at the "Hasharon" mall in Netanya- 5 people
killed
5.12.05 - An additional bombing at the "Hasharon" mall in Netanya- 5 people
killed.
26.10.05 - A suicide bombing at the market in Hadera- 6 people killed.
17.04.06 - A suicide bombing at Neve Sha'anan Street, near the old bus
station in Tel Aviv -9 people killed.