Israeli intelligence sources have traced Thursday's suicide bomb attack that injured dozens in a Tel Aviv pedestrian mall to Iran and Syria. The militant group Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack. Syria and Iran are both known to support Islamic Jihad.
Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said early Friday, 'We have definitive proof that the financing of the terror attack ... came directly from Iran, while the planning was carried out in Syria.'
A spokesman for the Syrian government denied involvement in the attack.
Iranian President Ahmadinejad spent Thursday and Friday in Damascus meeting with Syrian strongman Bashar Assad. The two countries are both on the U.S. list of nations that sponsor international terrorism and are united in their opposition to the United States and its policies.
The attacks came one week before Palestinian parliamentary elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the suicide bombing, calling it an attempt to sabotage next week's elections.
The militant group Hamas is expected to make a strong showing in the elections. Israel has said it may be open to negotiations with Hamas if the group agrees to disarm and abolish its charter which calls for the destruction of Israel. Thus far, Hamas has refused all calls to disarm and the PA has refused to confront militant groups for fear of starting a civil war.
Islamic Jihad is boycotting the elections and appears to be doing its best to disrupt them.
