A detailed investigation by the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, cited by researcher Yoni Ben Menachem of the Jerusalem Center for Foreign and Security Affairs, reveals that Shin Bet agents disguised as international aid workers operated vegetable stalls in central Gaza as cover for a weeks-long intelligence-gathering operation. The target was Mueen al-Arabid, head of Hamas's security apparatus, who was reportedly captured. The report says Israel deployed at least eight drones daily over the area; Hamas detected the air activity but assessed it as preparation for an airstrike, not an abduction.
The Asharq Al-Awsat investigation, published Monday and relayed by the Jerusalem Center for Foreign and Security Affairs (JCFA), offers a rare public account of an Israeli intelligence operation inside Gaza. According to the report, the Shin Bet spent weeks establishing a cover story as humanitarian workers, including operating vegetable market stalls in central Gaza, to surveil and ultimately capture Mueen al-Arabid. The report claims that at least eight Israeli drones were airborne daily over the area, providing overhead intelligence coverage. Hamas operatives reportedly noticed the drone activity but misinterpreted it as preparation for an aerial strike rather than a ground abduction. The operation, if confirmed, would mark a significant tactical success for Israeli intelligence, demonstrating the ability to penetrate deep into Hamas-controlled territory with sustained covert presence. The Zioneer notes that the report has not been independently verified, and Israeli authorities have not commented. This account adds to a history of reported Israeli intelligence operations in hostile territory, though details often emerge only through foreign media investigations.
- StrongReport: Dozens of Hamas operatives arrested attempting to infiltrate Gaza militias
- DevelopingReport: Armed gang members attempted to kidnap a Hamas operative in Gaza, but Hamas operatives stopped one suspect
- StrongCOGAT: Hamas forcibly seized UN food distribution center in Jabalya, attacked aid truck drivers
- StrongCaptured Hamas internal security chief sedated, on ventilator after condition deteriorates
Source and signal
A single-sourced dispatch is never rated Confirmed or Strong. Its Signal strengthens only when a second, independent source corroborates it.
- Open-source intake