19 captured, 1 killed in IDF anti-terror sweeps

“The main suspect came out holding a knife and tried to stab our troops who responded by shooting,” a police spokesman said of one eastern Jerusalem raid.

By World Israel News Staff

Nineteem people suspected of terror offenses were captured by Israeli troops, with one suspect killed, during widespread arrests in Jerusalem and Palestinian Authority-controlled enclaves in the Judea and Samaria region.

The widespread anti-terror sweeps, which occurred overnight Sunday, came on the heels of a terror attack in Jerusalem targeting unarmed Jewish civilians, which saw seven people wounded.

Israeli security forces arrested 19 wanted terrorists as part of the ongoing anti-terror initiative Operation Wave Breaker, which was rolled out after a string of deadly terror attacks that began in mid-March.

According to statements from the Israeli military, troops came under fire from local rioters while carrying out arrest raids in Kabatia, a village near Jenin.

Troops successfully used riot dispersal methods to push back the mob, and no Israeli casualties were reported.

During a search for illegal weapons in an eastern Jerusalem home, a resident of the house attempted to stab police officers.

“The family members came out and started confronting the troops when suddenly, the main suspect came out holding a knife and tried to stab our troops who responded by shooting,” a police spokesman said.

Police shot and killed the man, who was identified by Arabic-language media as Kfar Aqab resident Muhammad Shaham.

Social media footage showed Kfar Aqab residents hurling heavy objects and stones from rooftops onto IDF vehicles as they left the neighborhood.

Although the objects, including cinder blocks, were thrown from a height of several stories, the armored vehicles do not appear to be damaged.

The Israeli military said in a statement that the raids, which took place in the cities of Jericho and Hebron as well as in the nearby villages of Gifatlik, Zebidat, Bir Zeit, Jadora, Ezbet Tabiv, Dahariya, Beit Awa, and Deheisha, had turned up a number of illegal and improvised weapons, including machine guns.

Several stolen vehicles were also recovered.