Israeli security forces on Sunday night arrested at least one suspected Palestinian terrorist on the Tel Aviv promenade after a tense search, local media reported.
The suspect, who was arrested by the Israel Police and an Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) rapid intervention team, had planned an attack, but was unarmed when he was captured, according to Ynet.
Surveillance started at 6:00 p.m., after security forces received intelligence of the planned attack. At 7:00 p.m., the suspect was spotted near the Savidor Central Train Station. At 8:00 P.M., he had reached the U.S. Embassy, N12 reported.
Only after 9:15 p.m. did a special operations unit of the Yamam, the National Counter-Terrorism Unit of Israel’s Border Police, locate him on Ruppin Street and arrest him.
Several additional individuals were reportedly apprehended in the terrorist’s vicinity, but are only being suspected of illegally entering Israel, and not of terrorist activity, the Hebrew outlet said.
The Israel Police confirmed that two illegal residents were arrested in Tel Aviv. The suspects, who were transferred into Shin Bet custody, hailed from the Samaria city of Nablus (Shechem), according to Kan News.
During the search, the police and Shin Bet chose not to issue a warning to the public to prevent panic.
Noam Crick, a Tel Aviv resident, told N12: “This is certainly a source of deep worry and concern. We’re not used to things like that, certainly not in the heart of Tel Aviv. This time it’s really close—a feeling that they’re bursting the Tel Aviv bubble.”
In June, the Israel Police arrested two Palestinians who crossed into Tel Aviv from Samaria with IDF uniforms, following a report they were carrying “suspicious luggage” at a light rail station in the city.
Police forces and bomb disposal units were called to examine the bags and did not find weapons or hazardous materials, police stated, adding that officers did find “clothing items” suspected to have been issued by the IDF, “specifically a pair of pants and a jacket.”
The two suspects, a 44-year-old resident of Nablus (Shechem) and a 59-year-old resident of Beita al-Tahta, were taken into custody for further questioning by Israel’s security agencies, according to the statement.
Following a deadly shooting by two Palestinians at a Tel Aviv-Jaffa light rail station in October, the defense establishment warned that there are some 40,000 people illegally inside the pre-1967 borders, claiming that the attack could be only the beginning unless the issue was addressed.
