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Israel’s intelligence community has determined that Islamic State of Iraq and Levant was operating in the West Bank.
The intelligence community has assessed that ISIL was operating in several cities under Palestinian Authority control. Officials said the Israel Security Agency and Military Intelligence determined that ISIL was recruiting Palestinians linked to such insurgency groups as Fatah and Hamas.
“The Israeli military has been deeply concerned that ISIL videos are influencing the Palestinians, who are extremely frustrated with their leadership,” a senior official said.
On Jan. 4, Israel reported the capture of a three-member ISIL cell in the southern West Bank city of Hebron. Officials said ISA and the military tracked and arrested the ISIL suspects, who confessed to assembling bombs for attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians. They said the cell began planning operations in the summer of 2014.
The alleged ISIL cell in Hebron, comprised of men in their early 20s, did not conduct any attacks. Israel did not explain.
“They planned to murder an Israel Defense Forces soldier and use his weapon and uniform to carry out a shooting attack,” the Israel Security Agency said.
The military was said to have been alarmed by the growth of ISIL in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Officials said Military Intelligence has established a unit to focus on ISIL.
“We have made adjustments inside the MI units because we came to the understanding that ISIL is breaking historic boundaries,” an MI unit chief told Israeli television. “ISIL does not belong to a particular region in which we may have sources.”
