BERLIN — An alleged Mossad spy from Israel wanted in connection with the hit-squad slaying of a Hamas agent in Dubai has been arrested in Poland, officials said Saturday.
The man, using the name Uri Brodsky, is suspected of working for Mossad in Germany and helping to issue a fake German passport to a member of the Mossad operation that allegedly killed Hamas agent Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai in January, said a spokesman for the German federal prosecutor’s office.
Brodsky was arrested in early June upon his arrival in Poland because of a European arrest warrant issued by Germany, which is now seeking his extradition, the spokesman said, declining to be named in line with department policy.
The spokesman had no estimate of how long it could take for Brodsky to be extradited from Poland to Germany, saying “the matter is now in the hands of the Polish authorities.” If Brodsky agrees, the extradition could take a few days, but that isn’t likely, the spokesman said.
In Warsaw, Monika Lewandowska, a spokeswoman for Polish prosecutors, confirmed that the suspect, identified only as Uri B., was arrested at the city’s international airport June 4.
The suspect appeared before a Polish court on June 6, and was ordered to remain in temporary arrest for up to 40 days, she said.
In Israel, the Foreign Ministry said without elaborating that it was aware of the man’s fate.
“At the moment, we’re looking into that like any other Israeli who has been arrested, and he’s getting consular treatment,” said spokesman Andy David.
Police in the United Arab Emirates said the elaborate hit squad linked to the Jan. 19 slaying in Dubai of al-Mabhouh — one of the founders of Hamas’ military wing — involved about 25 suspects, most of them carrying fake passports from European nations.
