Explosives 'wash up' off Ashdod and Ashkelon
Two barrels of explosives washed up off the coast between Ashdod and Ashkelon on Monday night. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Islamic Jihad, the Fatah Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade and the Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades issued a leaflet in Gaza claiming responsibility for sending three explosive devices to Ashkelon and Ashdod.
A large barrel filled with explosives was found on a beach in the Ashkelon area Monday morning. The beach was closed.
Policemen and bomb disposal experts neutralized the explosives, according to police spokesman Miki Rosenfeld.
A second barrel filled with explosives was discovered later in the day on the shore of the city of Ashdod.
Authorities conducted a controlled explosion on the second barrel. Police were combing the beaches, and nearby areas were closed to the public. Authorities have not discussed a third device.
The Israel Defense Forces, in a statement Monday, said several Palestinian groups had claimed responsibility January 29 for a maritime terrorist attack after the detonation of two sea-born explosive devices about two kilometers (1.24 miles) off the coast of Gaza.
Both barrels, containing between 15 and 25 kilograms of explosives each, were neutralized by police sappers.
Sources in the Southern District police said they believed the barrels, which originated in Gaza, were intended to explode next to a ship or near beachgoers.
Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the barrels.
Police have banned fishing or swimming at the beaches between Ashdod and Zikim today over concerns that there may be additional explosives still in the Mediterranean or on a beach.
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Security officials said that terror actions at sea are carried out jointly by Fatah, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees.
As far as is known, Hamas is not directly involved in these actions.
Security officials said the attempted attack was original, but not especially sophisticated, and that attempts by terror groups to perpetrate attacks by sea would continue and increase in the near future.
Large police contingents are to deploy today to search for any additional explosive charges. The operation was ordered by police head of operations Maj. Gen. Bentzi Sao after he held consultations.
The search began last night along the shore, on foot and by air, and was scheduled to resume at dawn today.
Security personnel at infrastructure facilities along the shore were instructed to heighten their level of alertness and to conduct increased patrols.
Police are asking the public to be particularly aware of any suspicious objects, especially at bathing beaches, and to inform the police immediately if they find anything unusual.
The barrel that washed ashore on Ashkelon's Hofit beach was discovered by a fisherman at 11:30 A.M. After he called police the beach was evacuated. It took several hours for sappers to neutralize the explosives, which were taken to a laboratory for examination.
A senior official in one of the Palestinian organizations said that the devices discovered in the sea near Ashdod and Ashkelon were intended for a terrorist attack on the Ashdod Port and on oil infrastructures in the Ashkelon area.
The source told Ynet that the planned attack was a joint effort by the al-Quds Brigades, Islamic Jihad's military wing, Salah a-Din Brigades, the PRC's military wing and al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Fatah's military wing. The senior official said that the devices were sent to sea last weekend in response to Israel's crimes.
Israel Matzav: Explosives 'wash up' off Ashdod and Ashkelon
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