Officers of the Israel Police’s Northern District over the weekend seized a shipment of more than 20,000 bullets intended for “terrorist elements in Judea and Samaria,” the police announced in a statement on Sunday.
Two residents of Ma’ale Iron, a local council that consists of five Arab Israeli villages near Megiddo, were arrested.
The suspects, aged 22 and 35, were pulled over by officers on Friday in the area of the Megiddo Junction, located a mere minutes’ drive away from the Samaria security barrier.
Both men were detained for questioning by security services.
The Israel Police said, “This massive seizure, worth hundreds of thousands of shekels, is another success of the Northern District in locating the sources of illegal arms and eliminating smuggling routes.”
Iran continues to instigate terrorism in Judea and Samaria by flooding the area with weapons, The New York Times reported in April, citing American, Israeli and Iranian officials.
The majority of the weapons smuggled into Judea and Samaria are small arms and assault rifles, analysts said. However, the U.S. and Israeli officials said that the Islamic Republic is also smuggling in advanced weaponry, including anti-tank missiles and rocket-propelled grenades.
In the first six months of 2024, Judea and Samaria saw more than 500 Arab terrorist attacks each month on average, according to data made public by Hatzalah Judea and Samaria (Rescuers Without Borders).
During that period, first responders recorded 3,272 acts of terrorism in the region, including 1,868 cases of rock-throwing, 456 attacks with Molotov cocktails, 299 explosive charges and 109 shootings.
Terrorists murdered 14 people and wounded more than 155 others in Judea and Samaria between January and July, the rescue group said.
