Israeli police impersonate reporters

JERUSALEM - Israeli police posed as a TV news crew to trap a one-time Palestinian informer, provoking an outcry from critics who said the sting threatened to put the lives of newspeople at risk.

Police said the target of the operation was Nadim Injaz, a Palestinian man who had been wanted for making unspecified threats.

Last year, Injaz burst into the British Embassy in Tel Aviv, claimed to have a gun, demanded political asylum and threatened suicide. Although the weapon turned out to be plastic, Injaz was convicted on charges related to the embassy storming and spent several months in prison before being released a few weeks ago.

Since his release, Injaz has made "a number of threats," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said, without elaborating.

At the time of the embassy storming, police acknowledged that Injaz was once an informer. Israeli media said Injaz was upset that Israel did not do more to protect and support him. Injaz, who is originally from the West Bank, was living in Israel at the time of his arrest. More..