Israeli security forces nab Bedouins posing as IDF in robbery near Hebron

Israeli security forces on Tuesday arrested three armed Bedouins who impersonated troops and robbed a store in Dhahiriya, a Palestinian town near Hebron in Judea, the Israel Police said in a statement.

The three Bedouins “posed as security forces and robbed a jewelry store in Dhahiriya,” police said, adding that three M-16 rifles and a handgun were seized after a “swift and precise operation” that led to their arrest.

The arrests were first reported by Ynet some 10 minutes after the Israel Defense Forces confirmed a manhunt “following a report about armed suspects impersonating IDF soldiers and robbing stores in Dhahiriya.

“The forces are currently conducting a chase after the suspects,” the military statement added. “We stress that these are not IDF soldiers.”

Dahariya is a Palestinian city in southern Judea, located south of Hebron near the Green Line marking the Jewish state’s pre-1967 borders. It lies along a key north–south route linking Hebron with the Negev Desert, home to dozens of Bedouin tribes with semi-nomadic traditions.

According to the police, the suspects drove a car “made to appear as a security vehicle, including emergency lights, while dressed in IDF uniforms and equipped with body armor, helmets and firearms.

“At a certain point, the suspects forced their way into a Palestinian-owned jewelry store and robbed its contents,” it said. “Immediately afterward, they fled southward.”

“As soon as the incident occurred, police, Border Police and IDF troops launched intensive operational efforts to locate the suspects, including intelligence collection and direction, among other means by the ‘Hetz Yehuda’ unit,” police added. “The suspects were located near Samu.”

“This is another case in which Judea and Samaria District police officers are operating jointly with Border Police and the IDF to eradicate serious crimes, including thwarting attacks and arresting suspects,” it added.