Wednesday, the Israeli Security Agency (ISA), also knows as Shin Bet, confirmed the capture of the terrorists behind the murder of Danny Gonen on June, including the shooter himself.
According to the ISA statement, following a joint operation with elite IDF units and special police forces they located and arrested several Palestinian Fatah members linked to last month’s shooting of Gonen and his friend.
On Friday, June 19, the two young civilians were driving back from a hiking trip when a Palestinian man pulled them over, pretending to be in distress before opening fire on them, killing Gonen and injuring his friend.
Following the attack, a joint covert investigative and operational effort resulted in the arrest of several suspects from the vicinity of the Palestinian city of Ramallah. Suspects apprehended confessed to have been involved in several terrorist attacks including Gonen’s shooting.
Additionally, illegal arms which include the gun used in the shooting were found, linking the suspects directly to the event.
The shooter, Muhammed Abu Shaheen, 29, is a member of an elite Fatah security unit, Force 17, and receives a regular salary from the Palestinian Authority (PA). Abu Shaheen admitted to the shooting and several other terrorist attacks in the past.
According to the ISA, the other arrestees, save for one, are all affiliated to Fatah, which is the largest faction within the Palestinian Authority.