Several members of a terror cell in Shechem, which opened fire on Israeli cars at Jit Intersection next to the Samaria community of Kedumim, were arrested in a joint mission between the IDF and Israel Security Agency (ISA, or Shin Bet).
Permission was given today (Monday) to release details about the incident, which took place on January 15. The rifle used in the attack was seized at the time of the arrests.
The shooting attack fortunately did not cause any injuries, even while it damaged the car. Later on, the cell threw an explosive at an additional passing vehicle.
Shin Bet interrogations of the arrested terrorists revealed that in the two months proceeding the attack, the cell was involved in two other shootings which were unsuccessful, despite the fact that the terrorists gathered information and conducted shooting practices.
The terrorists held by Israel include Abd Al Jabar Amad Na'if Shakhshir (23), and Jahad Ahmad Adel Shakhshir (21). Several of the terrorists were arrested by Palestinian Authority (PA) police, and are currently still being held by them.
Several terrorists were arrested from another cell that was involved in earlier attack attempts, including Amjad Fatah Allah Ahmad Fula (24), Malek Abd Elnatzer Suleiman Tzobakh (22), and Nadal Majd Jawad Zurba (21).
"The arrest of the cell members, mere days after the attack was conducted at Jit Intersection, prevented the continued establishment of a military cell, which in recent months conducted several attempts to attack Israeli citizens in the Samaria region," noted Shin Bet.
Another arrest reveals facts of Bir Zeit shooting
A separate terror arrest was similarly allowed to be published today (Monday). On February 25 around 12:30 a.m., an IDF position near Bir Zeit located north of Ramallah came under fire by terrorists who additionally threw a stun grenade.
Two days after the attack several Bir Zeit residents, members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror group, were arrested on suspicion of having carried out the attacks. The arrest was coordinated between the IDF, Shin Bet and the police.
One of the arrested suspects, Fadi Tzadek Musa Washaha (27), who had previously been indicted in terror-related crimes and served several years in jail, admitted in interrogation to having carried out the attack with Motazz Washaha, also of Bir Zeit.
Fadi similarly turned in an improvised weapon that was used in the shooting, and admitted to having planned the attack for several months, in the process obtaining weapons and running simulations.
On the day of the attack, Fadi took position near the IDF post and opened fire, while Motazz acted as look-out. The two then fled back to Bir Zeit.
Motazz was killed in the attempt to arrest him two days later, after refusing to turn himself in and firing at security forces.
Palestinian Authority (PA) media condemned the killing of Motazz, and mere hours after his funeral in which calls of revenge were made, over 200 local Arabs hurled stones at IDF soldiers, injuring five.
Fadi and other suspects remain under investigation.
Shin Bet noted the high level of motivation among terror groups in the region, and the high danger posed by PFLP in conducting attacks against Israeli targets.