Palestinian brothers arrested in Hebron with concealed knife

Security forces stopped two Palestinian brothers as they tried to slip past security checks at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron on Monday and then discovered one of them was carrying a knife concealed in some papers, police said.

The siblings, aged 18 and 19 from the nearby Palestinian city of Yatta, were taken away for questioning as to the motive for their actions, Border Police said in a statement.

Security forces became suspicious of the pair when they noticed them milling around near one of the security check posts at the entrance to the holy site, located in the West Bank city. Officers at the scene stopped them as they tried to bypass security and enter the compound.

During a search of their possessions one of the suspects was found to have a knife hidden in a bundle of papers he was holding, police said.

The Tomb of the Patriarchs is sanctified by Jews and Muslims as the burial place of biblical patriarch Abraham and others.