Malaysia Releases Images of Two Suspects in the Assassination of a Hamas Member

On Wednesday, April 24, Malaysian police released the first images of two suspects in the assassination of a Palestinian lecturer at the University of Kuala Lumpur, suggesting that these foreign individuals may not have left Malaysia yet. Fadi Mohammed al-Batsh, a 35-year-old Palestinian with a PhD in electrical engineering, was assassinated on April 1 when he left his home for morning prayers. In addition to teaching at the university, he was the imam of the mosque in his neighborhood. Hours after the assassination, Malaysian police stated that two assailants on a motorcycle had waited for twenty minutes for al-Batsh to leave his house and shot him with fourteen bullets from almost point-blank range before fleeing. On April 3, Malaysian police released the first computer-generated image of the two suspects, but senior police officials presented a clear and real photo of one of the suspects at a press conference on Wednesday morning, identifying him as possibly of Middle Eastern descent. The police also speculated that the suspects may have changed their appearance. According to Reuters, Malaysian police confirmed that they still do not know the nationality of the assailants but stated they have 'leads' to continue the investigation. The police also suggested that the suspects had been in Malaysia for three months under false identities and were preparing for the assassination. They do not know which border the suspects entered Malaysia from. The police also found a Kawasaki motorcycle that the assailants used a few kilometers from the assassination site. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister, previously described the assailants as 'Europeans linked to a foreign intelligence agency.' Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas's political bureau, held Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence agency, responsible and announced that Hamas would send a delegation to meet with Malaysian officials regarding the ongoing investigation into the assassination of their member. Tensions between Hamas and Israel have escalated in the past month over protests at the Gaza borders; the Israeli Prime Minister stated last week during a visit to the border that the 'unchangeable principle' for Israel is to take preemptive action against those who work to kill Israelis. Israeli military commanders have stated that if Hamas continues the border crisis, targeting its activists may again be on the agenda. Meanwhile, Malaysian police reported that the assailants had planned the assassination long in advance and had spent several months in Malaysia. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's Defense Minister, stated that the deceased 'was not a saint but was involved in engineering the production of Hamas rockets,' while denying Mossad's involvement in the assassination. According to Israeli media, Lieberman added that 'various Palestinian factions attribute every settlement between themselves to Mossad.' Several other Israeli ministers also denied their country's involvement in al-Batsh's assassination but expressed satisfaction with the assassination of the Hamas engineer, according to the Associated Press. German news agency analyzed that Israel has 'a long history of targeting Palestinian militants in foreign countries.' Yossi Melman, an intelligence affairs reporter for the Maariv newspaper, also told an Israeli television network that this assassination could align with Israel's objectives. In the thirteen years since Israel left the Gaza Strip, Hamas has produced more precise rockets, many of which have been fired into Israeli cities. In recent years, Hamas has had severe conflicts with the Israeli army. Meanwhile, hundreds of Palestinians and Malaysian supporters of Palestinians attended al-Batsh's funeral in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday; Egypt has also allowed al-Batsh's body to be flown from Malaysia to Cairo and then taken to Gaza for burial through the Rafah crossing in the coming days. According to Palestinian media, Fadi al-Batsh, in addition to his activities in Hamas's military wing, was collecting funds for Syrian opponents and some targets desired by Middle Eastern Islamists through 'Islamic charity organizations.' Before migrating to Malaysia, he was an electrical engineer in the Gaza Strip.