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Jan. 18, 2005 19:08 | Updated Jan. 19, 2005 13:39
Suicide bombing kills Shin Bet agent, wounds 7
By MARGOT DUDKEVITCH


A Shin Bet agent, Oded Sharon, was killed and seven other security personnel were wounded when a suicide bomber blew up at the IDF's Orhan outpost at the Gush Katif junction shortly before 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday night.

IDF officials assessed that the suicide bomber was headed for Gush Katif to perpetrate an attack there when he was detained at a checkpoint by security staff.

Shortly before the attack, security forces received a tip that the suspect was headed for the checkpoint, and upon his arrival, soldiers recognized him and ordered him out of his car.

At this point he was searched by Shin Bet agents, but they failed to find the explosives, which were hidden in his underwear.

The bomber detonated his explosives as he was being led by soldiers to a trailer for a second round of searches, according to procedure, three meters from the building's entrance.

The premature explosion likely prevented a possible large-scale attack, but fatally wounded Sharon, 36, a field coordinator from Gan Yavne, who left behind a wife and three children. This is the first time a Shin Bet agent has been killed in Gaza during the past four years of violence.

One officer suffered severe wounds, a soldier was moderately wounded and two other soldiers and three Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) personnel were lightly wounded. All were brought by helicopter to Soroka Hospital in Beersheba for treatment.

In the aftermath of the fatal attack, the IDF and Shin Bet Wednesday were investigating the circumstances under which the terrorist succeeded in detonating his explosives if he had undergone procedural security searches.

Regarding the failure of security forces to discover the detainee's bomb before it was fatally detonated, Menahem Landau, former head of the Shin Bet's Jewish Department, told Army Radio, "In this test, the result does not look good."

"The procedures will likely have to be scrutinized – first of all whether they answer the problem, and if they do – then we must look into what went wrong," Landau said.

Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack and identified the suicide bomber as Omar Tabash, 21, a fugitive from Absan in central Gaza. Orhan is where security forces check the identities of Palestinian motorists traveling on the Gaza' Strips main north-south artery.

The site of the attack is near the IDF Orhan outpost where Palestinians traveling between Rafah and Gaza undergo securtiy checks on the road.

Hours before the attack, security forces arrested a suspected terrorist at the same checkpoint.

In June, St.-Sgt. Ro'i Nissim was killed and five soldiers wounded when a tunnel rigged with explosives blew up underneath the outpost.

Speaking on Channel 2, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz declared, "Israel will respond to the suicide bombing – of course. We will seek out those who were responsible and track down the dispatchers."

A Southern Command officer told The Jerusalem Post that the army will certainly respond, although there are no immediate plans to retaliate.