Israeli forces thwart Hebron terror attacks

Border policemen noticed a suspicious Arab near the Cave of the Patriarchs and after detaining him, discovered he was carrying two knives.

Israel’s security services were successful in thwarting two terror attacks in Hebron on Monday morning.

Alert border policemen noticed a suspiciously behaving Arab in the vicinity of the Cave of the Patriarchs and decided to detain him. Found to be concealing two knives on his body, he was arrested and taken for questioning at the local police station.

Earlier on, police detained another suspicious-looking Arab in the same area. He, too, had been carrying a knife and was subsequently arrested and taken for questioning.

These arrests join a long list of successful incidents in which Israeli security forces were effective in preventing potential terror attacks, according to police.

In January, border policemen stopped an Arab carrying a suspicious package. Upon searching, they found a knife, a combat vest, an armored vest and a mask. A few days earlier, police apprehended an Arab who was carrying a large knife concealed inside his coat.

Superintendent Amal Gahnam, commander of a Border Police unit, said that the arrests on Monday are a small example of their many successes in securing the Cave of the Patriarchs. “We never know what the suspects intend to do when they leave their homes carrying weapons to a sensitive site like the Cave of the Patriarchs. We must remain vigilant and alert to all and any threats and scenarios,” he stated.

Wave of Knife Attacks

Israel’s citizens have been suffering from a wave of knife attacks in recent months.

A Palestinian terrorist wounded 15 Israelis, four seriously, by stabbing them on a bus in Tel Aviv on January 21.

Staff Sergeant Almog Shilony, an IDF soldier in his 20s, was critically wounded on November 10 by an Arab terrorist near the central bus station in Tel Aviv. The assailant stabbed him several times after trying to grab his rifle. Shilony died of his wounds.

Another stabbing occurred on January 11, when an Arab terrorist in Jerusalem’s Old City attacked an Israeli with a screwdriver, moderately wounding him.