Police fan out across Herzliya in search for suspected terrorist

Dozens of police officers took to the streets in Herzliya Tuesday morning to search for an East Jerusalemite suspected of planning a terror attack in the bustling Tel Aviv suburb.

Police said the suspect, described as a man in his 20s, evaded a police checkpoint in Jerusalem before heading to Israel’s commercial center. The car was later found abandoned in the center of Herzliya, police said.

“Forces have begun wide-ranging searches for the driver of the car,” a police spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

According to reports, the suspect fought with his father before leaving his family home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Tsur Baher saying he planned to carry out an attack.

Herzliya mayor Moshe Fadlon said he had ordered a massive increase in security at schools, kindergartens and other places where large numbers of people might gather.

Police called on the public to remain vigilant and contact the police if they see anything or anyone suspicious.

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Officials said the search was unrelated to an ongoing manhunt for an Israeli Arab man wanted for opening fire in a Tel Aviv bar Friday, killing 2.

That ongoing search has focused on north Tel Aviv’s Ramat Aviv Gimmel neighborhood, where Nishat Milhem worked before the Friday attack on the Simta bar in the center of the city.

However, on Monday officials admitted Milhem, considered armed and dangerous, may have fled Tel Aviv

Located just north of Tel Aviv, Herzliya is home to a large business district where several of the country’s largest firms have offices.

Many foreign diplomats and other high-level officials also call the seaside Herzliya Pituach neighborhood home.

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The attack in Tel Aviv, which has mostly been untouched by three months of near-daily violence, has touched a raw nerve in the normally laid-back city, setting residents on edge amid the ongoing search for Milhem.

With the Manhunt stretching into its fourth day Monday, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai implored residents to return to their routines. But the city remained subdued Monday, and attendance at many schools was sparse.

Oren Helman, a resident of Tel Aviv’s upscale Ramat Aviv neighborhood, where the search has focused, said he sent his two young daughters to school, but there were few other parents dropping children off. The few who came to school were not allowed to play outside in the playground.

“The parents who send their kids to school are worried. Those who don’t are scared,” he said.

Helman said the heightened security in the neighborhood helped put him at ease, and he didn’t want to cave in to violence or cause panic with his children. But he said there were heated discussions among parents on social media over whether their children were safe. Repeated rumors that the gunman has been seen also added to the unease, he said.

Agencies contributed to this report