2 attacks against soldiers thwarted
Palestinian attempts to stab soldier at Hawara checkpoint; troops gain control of terrorist, arrest him. Earlier, four Palestinians driving two cars, a bulldozer, break through IDF roadblock north of Ramallah, try to run over soldiers. Troops open fire, foil attack; suspects apprehended
West Bank terror attack thwarted: A Palestinian arrived Wednesday afternoon at the Hawara checkpoint, south of the city of Nablus, and attempted to stab a soldier.
The 16-year-old Palestinian arrived at the checkpoint at around 5 pm, approached a soldier and pulled out a 10-centimeter (4-inch) knife. The soldier cocked his weapon, and the terrorist let go of the knife.
The other troops stationed at the checkpoint gained control of the terrorists and took him in for questioning. There were no reports of injuries.
Earlier, IDF forces thwarted an attempt by Palestinians to run over a group of soldiers near the West Bank village of Sinjil, north of Ramallah. No injuries or damage were reported in the incident.
Four Palestinians traveling in three vehicles, including a bulldozer, broke through an army roadblock at around 3 pm and attempted to plow the vehicles into the soldiers.
The troops responded in accordance with military suspect apprehension protocol and fired in the air.
The Palestinians were detained and turned over for questioning by security forces.
At first the IDF reported that the incident was a terror attack, but an initial investigation by the defense establishment revealed that it may have been a criminally-motivated incident.
Monday saw a similar attack strike Jerusalem, as a terrorist driving a black BMW ran his car into a crowd of pedestrians at a busy intersection in central Jerusalem near the Old City, injuring 17 people.
