Israel: Shin Bet arrest Palestinian cell over 'pregnant' suicide bomber plot

Israeli security forces arrested five Palestinians from the West Bank in October and November, following a plot to send a female suicide bomber to the city of Tel Aviv dressed as a pregnant Jewish woman.

The main suspect in the plot was a woman from Jenin, named as Yasmin Sha'aban, along with four others, according to the Jerusalem Post.

"According to the plot that was hatched, Sha'aban was the designated suicide bomber. She was supposed to carry out the attack with an explosives belt hidden in her cloths while disguised as a pregnant Jewish woman," the Shin Bet agency revealed.

The suspects are believed to have been in contact with a resident of Gaza who guided them on how to build explosives, according to the agency's investigation.

Shin Bet said that all of the suspects have confessed to planning the suicide attack while two rifles, ammunition and explosive material were all seized following their arrest.

The political affiliation of the Gazan who assisted the cell remains unclear. While no evidence showed that Hamas or Islamic Jihad had knowledge of the plot, both groups had planned to claim responsibility of the attack, according to Israeli media.

The prevention of the alleged terror plot showed "the high motivation that exists among terror operatives to carry out attacks, with an emphasis on the period after Operation Pillar of Defence," Shin Bet said.