(Communicated by the IDF Spokesperson)
In a joint operation by the IDF and the ISA, a building in the Gaza Strip, in which the Palestinian Islamic Jihad senior leader Baha Abu Al Ata resided, was attacked.
The operation was authorized by the Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Benjamin Netanyahu.
Abu Al Ata was responsible for most of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s activity in the Gaza Strip and was a ticking bomb. Abu Al Ata led and personally participated in terror attacks and in attempts to harm Israeli civilians and IDF troops through rocket fire, sniper fire, drone launching and more.
Baha Abu Al Ata is responsible for most of the terror attacks in the last year from the Gaza Strip, the battle days which occurred around Israeli Memorial Day, rocket fire towards a music festival in the city of Sderot on the 25th of August, and lastly the rocket fire towards the city of Sderot on Friday, November 1st 2019.
Abu Al Ata was promoting preparations to commit immediate terror attacks in various ways towards Israeli civilians and IDF troops during the recent few days. Al Ata trained terror squads for infiltration and sniper attacks, drone launching and rocket fire to different distances.
The thwarting operation, conducted in cooperation between the IDF and the ISA, based on accurate intelligence and advanced operational capabilities, was a direct act to remove an imminent threat.
The IDF has deployed troops and is prepared for a wide range of offensive and defensive scenarios.