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‘Fatah official attempted to assassinate Egypt, Qatar envoys in Gaza’

April 8, 2019 at 2:27 pm

Prison cells, 20 June 2016 [Derek Key/Flickr]

Egyptian intelligence arrested Fatah leader Zaki Al-Sakani in Cairo over plans to blow the convoys of Egyptian and Qatari delegations in Gaza, senior security source revealed to MEMO yesterday.

Al-Sakani, who lives in Cairo, disappeared earlier this month.

A Palestinian security source told MEMO: “He was planning to target the convoy of the Egyptian intelligence delegation and the Qatari ambassador who visit Gaza from time to time.”

Regarding the reasons for his plans, the security source told MEMO: “He wanted to mix the cards. His plan is part of a wider one which aims to undermine the Egyptian mediation and the Qatari efforts related to facilitating the Israeli siege imposed on Gaza.”

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Al-Sakani spent eight years in prison in Gaza after being found guilty of taking part in making, planning and carrying out an attack that killed a number of Hamas leaders in 2007.

Dismissed Fatah leader Mohammad Dahlan mediated for his released in October 2016, when he immediately left to Egypt. He was received by Dahlan in Cairo.

Recently, he had started carrying out intelligence activities supervised by the Palestinian embassy in Cairo, loyal to Fatah, PLO and PA President Mahmoud Abbas.

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Al-Sakani and his aides, the security source revealed, smuggled weapons from Sinai to Gaza as part of their preparations to carry out their plan.

The source said that the Egyptian security seized a sum of $50,000 from Al-Sakani when he was arrested.

According to the security source, the General Intelligence Agency in Ramallah, run by the General Majed Faraj, loyal to Abbas, asked Al-Sakani to prepare for carrying out these plans and paid the sum to him.

The security source also revealed permanent contact between Al-Sakani and a senior Palestinian official in Abbas’ office in Ramallah.