Thread: Mahmoud al-Mabhouh Assassination

Originally Posted by Syme

I don't know what makes mrbazoun think that the guys in photos #4 and 7 look "very much like" Ashkenazi Jews. They could be, but they could just as easily be ethnic Arabs. They would easily blend in with the majority of people on the streets of Amman or Cairo. Which is what I said in the first place--I didn't say that they looked particularly like Arabs, what I said was that they could as easily be Arabs as they could be (non-Arab) Jews or anyone else.
EDIT: Also, new info: Some of the suspects in the assassination apparently fled from Dubai into Iran after the hit.

What makes me think they could be Ashkenazi Jews is that they look like Ashkenazi Jews, although I never said I was certain. Who knows who they are, but those pictures seem to be proportionally similar to Israel's demographic. It could be insignificant, but my expert ass bets it's evidence.

And where did you hear some of the suspects fled to Dubai?

Originally Posted by mrbazoun

What makes me think they could be Ashkenazi Jews is that they look like Ashkenazi Jews, although I never said I was certain.

Right, what I'm baffled about is what has lead you to believe in the first place that their appearance is particularly indicative of membership in that ethnic group. In other words, the fact that you said that they "look very much like" (your exact words) Ashkenazi Jews leaves me scratching my head, puzzled--because their faces would be right at home anywhere in the Mediterranean world. Earlier I said they could easily be Arabs. They could also easily be Turks, Armenians, Greeks, Bulgarians, or any of a dozen other ethnic/national origins. Yeah they could be Ashkenazi too; but you didn't just say they "could be" Ashkenazi, you decided that Ashkenazi Jews in particular, and not any other group, are what they "look very much like". Again, those were your exact words. So I'm wondering what makes you think they look particularly like Ashkenazi Jews rather than anything else. I've been through Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt in addition to Israel; and in Istanbul, Amman, Beirut, and Cairo/Helwan I saw plenty of people who look like those two guys. So your pegging them as Ashkenazi makes me suspect--again--that you are letting your assumptions/suspicions towards the Mossad color your reactions to the photos.

Bear in mind that even if they aren't Ashkenazi Jews, that certainly doesn't mean they aren't Mossad agents. As I mentioned earlier, Israel's population is very multi-ethnic. They could easily be Bulgarians, Arabs, or whatever AND be Mossad agents (and Jews as well, in fact).

Ultimately, though, gwahir is right: This whole business about what they look like is preposterous clutching at straws. You aren't going to be able to look at low-quality passport photos and draw any defensible conclusions about the ethnic origin of these people. You can draw conclusions all you want, don't get me wrong--they'll just be indefensible ones. Israel is definitely the #1 suspect, no question about it, but this ridiculous attempt to say "they got Jew faces!" and act like it's another item of evidence on the pile against Israel is just silly.

Originally Posted by mrbazoun

And where did you hear some of the suspects fled to Dubai?

Since the killing was IN Dubai, I don't think many suspects then fled TO Dubai. What I said was that two of the suspects fled to Iran. As for where I heard it, it was announced by the Dubai cops at least a week ago, and has been mentioned in a number of stories. Although now headlines seem to be saying that they fled "through" Iran rather than "to" Iran. Here's one:

http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=169561

Quote: "Three of the suspects - those holding Australian passports, one of them a woman - apparently fled Dubai following the assassination by boarding a ship to Iran."