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While Israel has declined to comment on the
January 20 slaying of Hamas commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, the United
Arab Emirates (UAE) named the suspected killers, including several who
had copied the European passports of actual immigrants to Israel.

Discerning a Mossad modus operandi and
predicting a stink over the trans-national identity thefts, some Israeli
pundits suggested Dagan would be forced to step down -- like
predecessor Danny Yatom in 1997 after a botched assassination in Jordan.

But the confidant, who asked not to be
identified, told Reuters: "Dagan has no intention of quitting before his
tenure is completed."

Resignation
would be tantamount to taking responsibility, the confidant said. The
hotel-room hit on Mabhouh was dressed up as death by natural causes but
was uncovered more than a week later when UAE police launched a murder
probe at Hamas's urging.

Dagan, a
former general, was appointed in 2002 with a mandate to take the fight
to Israel's foes abroad. He won plaudits from successive prime ministers
and an unusually long eight-year term.

The
Mossad chief's success in other and... >>>