- Salah Shehade
Salah Mustafa Muhammad Shehade (or Shehadeh) (Arabic: صلاح مصطفى محمد شحادة), (born in
Gaza onFebruary 24 1953 - d.July 22 ,2002 ). He led theIzz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades military wing of PalestinianIslamist movementHamas , until his assassination byIsrael . [CNN , [http://archives.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/meast/07/23/shehade.profile/index.html "Shehade was high on Israel most-wanted list"] , July 23, 2002]A member of Hamas since the formation of the group in 1987, he quickly became one of its influent leaders and was arrested a few times by Israel or the
Palestinian Authority . AfterYahya Ayash 's death, in 1996, Shahade became the official leader of the group, a responsibility he shared withMohammed Deif andAdnan al-Ghoul . Fact|date=November 2007During the
Al-Aqsa Intifada , Israel accused him of masterminding several attacks against both Israeli soldiers and civilians in theGaza strip and in Israel proper. It was also reported that Shahade was involved in the production ofQassam rockets , fired against Israeli civilian targets, and other homemade weapons, as well as in the smuggling of military equipment in the Gaza strip.Jewish Virtual Library , [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Terrorism/shehade1.html "Salah Shehade"] , 2007]On
July 22 ,2002 , theIsraeli Defense Forces targeted the building in which Shahade was hiding using a one ton bomb dropped by aF-16 plane in a densely populated neighborhood ofGaza City . 15 people were killed, including Shahade, his wife and 9 children. 50 others required medical attention as a result of the attack. Yuval Yoaz, [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/904552.html "State commission to examine civilian deaths in 2002 Shahade assassination"] ,Haaretz , September 19, 2007]The attack received widespread condemnation from other Middle Eastern Nations, Western Europe, and the United States.
Ariel Sharon initially praised it as "one of our greatest successes," but later told Yediot Ahronot, "had I known the outcome, I would have postponed the assassination." [Thomas, June [http://www.slate.com/?id=2068549 "Did Israel commit a terrorist act?"] . "Slate", July 26 2002.]In December 2005, a
class-action lawsuit was filed by theCenter for Constitutional Rights , naming formerShin Bet directorAvraham Dichter , the military chief in charge of the operation, as the sole defendant. Referring in particular to the Shehada assassination, the lawsuit alleges that Dichter "developed, implemented and escalated the practice of targeted killings." Citing the assassination of more than 300 Palestinian leaders and the deaths and wounding of hundreds of innocent bystanders, the suit claims that assassination is illegal under international law. [Pravda , [http://newsfromrussia.com/world/2005/12/09/69597.html "USA blames former Israeli security chief for bomb deaths in Gaza City"] , 09.12.2005] In 2007, the Israeli State Prosecutor's Office announced that an independentcommission of inquiry into the death of the 14 innocent Palestinian civilians would be held following a petition byYesh Gvul .ee also
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