Dubai: Arrest Netanyahu in Hamas death

JERUSALEM, March 3 (UPI) -- Dubai's police chief said Wednesday he will seek the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in the killing of Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Mabhouh.

Police Chief Dahi Khalfan Tamim said he would ask prosecutors in the United Arab Emirates to file Interpol arrest warrants for Netanyahu and the head of the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, McClatchy Newspapers reported. Al-Mabhouh was suffocated Jan. 19 after being injected with a muscle relaxant that caused paralysis, investigators said.

The Israeli government did not comment on Tamim's announcement but a Foreign Ministry official told McClatchy, "The general perception is that this will all blow over."

Tamim called for further investigation of Mossad. He said the agency "insulted" Dubai and other nations -- including Britain, France, Germany, Ireland and Australia -- through the use of fake passports by 26 suspects in the assassination of Mabhouh.

Thirteen of the suspects used prepaid bank cards issued by MetaBank -- owned by Meta Financial Group -- to pay for travel and accommodations. MetaBank officials told McClatchy Newspapers the bank is investigating the issuance of the cards through Payoneer, a company based in New York that has a research-and-development operation in Tel Aviv.

Tamim said Jews will be "singled out" in Dubai's new policy of more closely inspecting Western passports, the report said.