IDF arrests 5 Beitar Illit bus bombing suspects

The Shin Bet provided “accurate intelligence information” regarding the identities and whereabouts of the suspects, the IDF said.

By World Israel News Staff

Israeli security forces arrested a Palestinian man on Friday night who is believed to have planted a homemade bomb on a bus traveling through the ultra-Orthodox city of Beitar Illit Thursday evening, the IDF said in a statement.

According to the IDF, the terrorist is a resident of Battir, a Palestinian Authority-controlled town about 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) northeast of Beitar Illit.

Four other Palestinians from Battir, who are suspected of aiding the man who planted the bomb, were detained by authorities.

The Shin Bet provided “accurate intelligence information” regarding the identities and whereabouts of the suspects, the IDF said.

A vehicle used by the suspects in the attempted bombing was also seized by Israeli security forces.

In security footage from the bus released by authorities, a man can be seen leaving the bus just before smoke begins filling the vehicle. The improvised explosive device (IED) apparently malfunctioned, and passengers were able to evacuate the bus before the bomb was detonated.

Police sappers successfully neutralized the bomb. No casualties were reported in the attempted terror attack.

The discovery of the bomb launched a widescale manhunt throughout Beitar Illit on Thursday evening, with sirens wailing throughout the city and residents ordered to stay inside and lock their doors and windows.

The attempted bombing attack occurred shortly after a terror shooting on Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv on Thursday evening, which left two men critically wounded and the shooter dead.

In November 2022, an eastern Jerusalem man planted a bomb at a crowded bus stop in the capital city. The explosion killed two people – a teenage boy who was a dual citizen of Canada and Israel and a father of six.

The perpetrator had recently graduated with an engineering degree from an Israeli higher education institution. He was arrested several weeks after the bombing.