Israel Defense Forces shot a Palestinian terrorist who had approached a military outpost near Ma’ale Gilboa in the country’s north armed with a knife on Thursday night.
Troops stationed at the IDF’s Gilboa outpost “carried out a suspect arrest procedure and shot at him, the terrorist was neutralized,” the army said, adding that “there are no casualties among our forces.”
The condition of the shot terrorist was not immediately clear.
Ma’ale Gilboa is located in northern Israel, near Beit Shean, in close proximity to the Samaria security fence and the terror hub of Jenin.
Overnight Wednesday, IDF soldiers killed a Palestinian man after he hurled explosives at troops conducting a counter-terror raid near Jenin.
“Several terrorists hurled explosive devices toward IDF soldiers in Silat al-Harithiya in the area of Jenin,” the military stated on Thursday. “The soldiers responded with fire toward the terrorists to remove the threat, eliminating one terrorist and injuring two additional terrorists.”
During raids throughout northern Samaria, security forces detained eight terror suspects and seized two submachine guns, according to the IDF press release on Thursday afternoon.
“Israeli security forces will continue to operate to thwart terrorism in Judea and Samaria to maintain the security of Israeli civilians,” the statement continued.
The IDF launched “Operation Iron Wall” in January to neutralize the threat posed by terrorist hubs such as Jenin in northern Samaria. The ongoing counter-terror operation marks a change in Jerusalem’s security strategy, according to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz.
On Tuesday, Israeli security forces found a bomb-making laboratory in the western Samaria city of Tulkarem.
Tulkarem, which borders the Samaria security barrier, abuts the Jewish state’s densely populated coastal plain east of Netanya and is eight miles from the Mediterranean Sea.
During the Islamic Ramadan holiday, which ended on March 29, the IDF, Israel Security Agency and Israeli Border Police arrested 401 wanted terrorists, while 13 more were eliminated and 105 weapons were confiscated.
“Only three major attacks occurred during Ramadan due to extensive counterterrorism operations throughout Judea and Samaria and the ongoing operation to counter terrorism in northern Samaria,” the IDF said in a statement on Wednesday. During last year’s Ramadan, 27 significant attacks originated from Judea and Samaria, the IDF noted.
“Israeli security forces continue to operate to counter-terror throughout Judea and Samaria in order to ensure the security of Israeli citizens,” the military stated.