Screen grab from the footage released by the Israeli Police.
On May 8, Israeli forces arrested two Palestinians suspected of carrying out the recent deadly attack in the central Israeli city of Elad.
The two Palestinians, As’ad Yousef As’ad al-Rifa’i, 19, and Subhi Emad Subhi Abu Shqeir, 20, are accused of hacking three Israelis to death with an axe in Elad, a majority ultra-Orthodox city. A knife was also believed to have been used in the attack.
The Israel Defense Forces, Shin Bet security agency and Israel Police announced the arrest of the two suspects in a joint statement.
The two suspects, both from a town near Jenin in the West Bank, were reportedly arrested in a forested area near Elad. Before hiding in the forested area, the suspects were reportedly taking shelter in a local school. During the arrest al-Rifa’i admitted to security forces that he committed the attack with Abu Shqeir.
The arrest of the suspects was welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who praised the work of security forces.
“We are at the beginning of a new stage in the war on terror… You cannot throw a match and escape,” the premier said at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting. “The Israeli government’s top mission is to restore personal security to Israeli citizens.”
The deadly axe attack in Elad was the most recent in a series of attacks in Israel and the West Bank which claimed the lives of 19 people. The attacks were a response to an Israeli crackdown on Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Israel, which is running out of security options in Jerusalem and the West Bank, has recently turned its eyes to the Gaza Strip. Tel Aviv has reportedly threatened to assassinate the leader of the Hamas Movement, Yahya Sinwar, in response to the recent wave of attacks.
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