A bomb was found, and then detonated in a controlled blast by IDF forces on Monday night at the Jewish holy site of Joseph’s tomb in the West Bank city of Nablus, known biblically as Shechem.
The explosive device was spotted during a security check prior to the arrival of 1,000 Jewish worshippers to the site overnight. As the tomb is located within Palestinian-controlled territory, visits by Jewish worshippers are sporadic, take place exclusively during night-time hours, and must be fully coordinated with and supervised by the IDF.
The holy site has been firebombed on numerous occasions by local Palestinians, and Jewish visitors are often the targets of rock-throwing—even under IDF supervision. Palestinians threw stones at security forces overnight, damaging a bus. No injuries were reported.
