Hamas reported on Sunday that Palestinian Authority security forces have began a wave of arrests of its members in Tulkarm. According to a report by Voice of Israel Radio, 25 Hamas terrorists have so far been arrested in the city.
The arrests come following a series of terror attacks in Judea and Samaria two weeks ago, which killed four Israeli civilians and left two others wounded. The first attack took place at the Bani Naim junction just south of Hevron, while the second took place near the Rimonim Junction and the Jewish community of Kochav HaShachar in the Binyamin region of Samaria. In both cases, terrorists shot at vehicles in which Israelis were riding.
Palestinian Authority security forces announced last week that they arrested six terrorists who were involved in the two shooting attacks. According to the reports, all six are members of Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades. Hamas had earlier claimed that the PA had arrested 550 of its members and summoned 1,500 others to an investigation as part of a crackdown following the two attacks, though the PA denied this, calling the claims “no more than lies.”
Earlier on Sunday, it was reported that a 12-year-old girl from the Samarian Jewish community of Har Bracha who was wounded a week and a half ago after terrorists hurled stones towards the car she was riding in near Ariel, was sent home on the eve of Rosh Hashanah after undergoing surgery for wounds to the skull suffered in the attack. Her parents said that they received their daughter back as a gift from G-d, as had the rock gone in a miniscule distance more into her skull, there would have been no way to save her.
A community source said the girl is suffering from dizziness, but is recovering otherwise.
Last weekend, Minister of Internal Security Yitzhak Aharonovich said that Israeli police was closer than ever to catching the terrorists who committed the attack at the Bani Naim junction. “We are close to catching the terrorists and I hope soon to have news about this,” he said.