Sharon attack foiled, claims Israeli security forces

Israeli security forces have foiled an attack that may have targeted the Jerusalem offices of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

The government said Palestinian Hussam Nablusi told investigators that he planned to plant a 33-pound bomb in the premier’s office or in an ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood in Jerusalem while delivering mail.

Nablusi’s job with an Israeli company allowed him to enter the prime minister’s office compound, the government said.

Ringed by a thick security fence, the ivy-covered compound is one of Israel’s most tightly guarded government sites.

The government said Nablusi was arrested in a joint operation of the police and the Shin Bet security service on May 16.

It said he told investigators he planned to detonate the explosive device by using of a mobile phone, but he had not chosen whether to target the Prime Minister’s Office or a synagogue.

Nablusi told investigators that two West Bank vegetable traders brought the explosive device into Jerusalem, hiding it under their produce, the statement said.

Attempted attacks by Palestinians on strategic Israeli sites have been relatively rare since the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian violence in September 2000.