TEL AVIV, Israel, May 15 (UPI) -- Security has been tightened around Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas amid an alleged Islamic Jihad plot to assassinate him.
Ha'aretz, quoting unidentified sources close to Abbas, said the plot had been reported to the Israelis.
According to the sources, Islamic Jihads plan to kill Abbas using a car packed with explosives. No further details of the alleged plot, however, were disclosed.
Abbas has been PA chairman since the death of Yasser Arafat. In recent Palestinian elections, his party was ousted in the Palestinian assembly by the militant Hamas, which refuses to renounce violence against Israel.
The election victory of Hamas has thrown a wrench in the already sputtering Middle East peace process and resulted in foreign aid to the PA dwindling to a trickle.
Ha'aretz said the security detail around Abbas had been greatly expanded, and the presidential guard is exclusively in charge of guarding his offices, while others protect his residences and screen his travel routes.
Islamic Jihad is a shadowy terror group that is believed to have originated in the Gaza Strip in the 1970s. It is based in Syria and is believed to receive funding from Syria and Iran.
Like Hamas and its militant wing, Islamic Jihad is opposed to the existence of Israel.
