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

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.

The pair were due to appear in court Sunday for a remand hearing.

View of Lifta, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, December 17, 2016 (Hadas Parush/Flash90)

“The Israel Police will continue to determinedly fight everything related to violent incidents of any kind,” said the statement from the force.