Rabin Will Seek Extradition of Hamas Leader Detained in U.S. : Israel: Premier ignores advice of Justice Ministry. Officials fear they can’t produce enough evidence to link militant to specific acts.

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin decided Sunday night to seek the extradition of Mousa abu Marzuk, a leader of the Islamic fundamentalist Hamas movement, from the United States, Israeli officials confirmed.

Rabin reportedly overruled the advice of the Justice Ministry, which said that Israel will have a hard time producing hard evidence in U.S. courts linking Abu Marzuk to any specific terrorist acts.

Some officials and analysts voiced concern Sunday that Abu Marzuk’s successful extradition could lead to a wave of attacks by Hamas inside Israel.

“It is a reasonable worry,” said Uri Dromi, a government spokesman. “But you have to be tough with these people. You have to crack down on them.”

For Rabin, Abu Marzuk’s detention by U.S. immigration officials at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport last week has become the curse of getting what you wished for.

The Israeli government has long pleaded with the Clinton Administration to crack down on Hamas activities in the United States. The organization is thought to have an extensive fund-raising and publication network there, and Israel has also alleged that some Hamas operations against Israelis are ordered by leaders living legally in the United States and that some attacks are carried out by men trained in America.

Even Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat has accused the Americans of tolerating the free movement of Hamas leaders and funds in the United States.

In January, both Arafat and Rabin praised the Clinton Administration when it classified Hamas as a terrorist organization and introduced legislation Feb. 10 that would make fund raising for Hamas illegal in the United States. But after the United States took the bold step of detaining Abu Marzuk, the Israelis had hesitated in seeking his extradition.

“There is no question that this case is a real hot potato,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Danny Shek said. “It’s quite a dilemma. The best thing would be for him to evaporate. Everyone knows that these guys--political leaders such as Marzuk--are bad guys. But they are hard to try, because it is hard to collect evidence against them.”

Abu Marzuk, who Israeli security officials say is Hamas’ political leader, is due in court today, and it is believed that the U.S. government may seek to deport him.

Dromi said Sunday night that Jerusalem will ask U.S. authorities to delay any deportation procedures in order to allow Israel time to file its extradition request.

“We have to work out a way to convey to the Americans some information that the security agencies previously kept secret,” Dromi said.

But Justice Ministry officials studying the case reportedly told Rabin that there is little evidence against Abu Marzuk that Israel could present in a U.S. court to link him directly with terrorist attacks without compromising intelligence sources. Although the United States has classified Hamas as a terrorist organization, and Abu Marzuk has reportedly admitted to immigration officials that he is a Hamas member, Israel would almost certainly have to present convincing evidence linking Abu Marzuk to specific terrorist attacks in order to win his extradition, legal experts here say.

Even if it did succeed in convincing an American court, analysts here said Sunday, the government would then have to cope with the problems of imprisoning a man suspected of being the most important Hamas leader not already dead or jailed.

“They weighed all the issues, made all the calculations and decided to go for it,” Dromi said.

Although the Justice, Defense and Foreign ministries consulted with Rabin on the case, he made the final decision.

Born in a Gazan refugee camp, Abu Marzuk has been a legal resident of the United States for the past 14 years and was living most recently in Damascus, Syria. He was said to be returning to the United States on a fund-raising trip when he was picked up at the airport.

Hamas reacted with predictable fury when the Justice Department revealed Abu Marzuk’s detention last week. Hamas spokesmen in Jordan and the Gaza Strip said that the organization wrote a letter to President Clinton petitioning him to release Abu Marzuk.

--- UNPUBLISHED NOTE ---

In some 1997 stories, and stories from 2001 onward, Mousa abu Marzuk is referred to as Mousa abu Marzook.

--- END NOTE ---