Egypt gave Israel intelligence that led to last week’s Shin Bet (Israel Security
Agency) assassination of an al-Qaida-affiliate outside Hamas security
headquarters in Gaza City, Time magazine reported on Thursday.
Muhammad
Namnam, 27, a top operative with the Army of Islam, was killed by a missile shot
at his car from an IAF helicopter.
RELATED:‘Ticking bomb’ terrorist killed in Gaza air strike'Cairo wants a breakthrough in the peace process'Egyptian intelligence reportedly
discovered that Namnam was preparing an attack on US forces in Sinai from other
Army of Islam members captured in the Sinai.
An Egyptian security source
told Time that there was an unprecedented level of cooperation between Egyptian
and Israeli intelligence.
The magazine posited that the shared
intelligence was a result of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s anger after 49
Hizbullah men were reportedly found plotting against Egypt in Sinai.
The
Shin Bet confirmed the targeted killing shortly after it occurred, adding that
Namnam had been involved in 2006’s abduction of IDF tank gunner Gilad Schalit
and a number of other attacks in recent years.