2 arrested for stabbing 11-year-old on Jerusalem outskirts

Police track down adult suspects, one of whom was found with Mace, after boy suffers stab wound to chest in abandoned village of Lifta

Police have arrested two Jerusalem residents for stabbing an 11-year-old boy on the city’s outskirts.

The two, ages 18 and 23, are suspected of stabbing the child Saturday at Lifta, an abandoned Palestinian village on the western edge of Jerusalem, before fleeing.

A police statement said the boy suffered a stab wound to the chest. There was no word on his condition or a possible motive for the stabbing.

Officers called to the scene tracked down the older suspect, with police reporting that pepper spray was found in his bag. He was then taken to a police station for questioning.

Following these “initial investigatory activities,” police said they learned of the second suspect and arrested him at home.