Tunisia Blames Israel in Wazir Assassination
A Tunisian inquiry into the assassination of PLO military chief Khalil Wazir has concluded that the operation was conducted by Israel, official sources in Tunis said today.
In Washington, the State Department condemned Wazir’s killing and said it had nothing to do with it.
Tunisia intends to register a formal complaint against the Jewish state with the U.N. Security Council, the sources said.
The 52-year-old Wazir, best known as Abu Jihad, was shot to death at his suburban Tunis home early Saturday by a seven-person commando unit.
The PLO immediately blamed Israel’s secret service, Mossad, for the attack. Israeli leaders have refused to comment on the murder, which set off rioting in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The Tunisian investigation revealed that an Israeli military plane was about 34 miles outside Tunisian airspace at the moment of the attack, according to the sources. Other elements implicating Israel were not immediately disclosed.
Wazir’s wife had asked that her husband be buried as near as possible to his birthplace in what is now Israeli territory, sources said. The PLO evidently was rebuffed by Egypt but received permission for the burial Thursday in Damascus, Syria, where his elderly parents live, the sources said.
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