Michael Bachner is a news editor at The Times of Israel
Illustrative: Border Police officers stand at a checkpoint near Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs on January 19, 2018. (Border Police)
Security forces arrested a Palestinian man who tried to enter a holy site in the West Bank city of Hebron with a knife concealed on his person, police said on Thursday.
The suspect was detained by Border Police officers guarding the Tomb of the Patriarchs, a holy site revered by both Jews and Muslims.
He was taken for questioning to determine his motives, the police statement added.
Police also released a photo of the box-cutter.
A knife found by Border Police hidden under the clothes of a Palestinian man who was detained outside Hebron’s Tomb of the Patriarchs on March 5, 2018. (Border Police)
The Tomb of the Patriarchs is a frequent target for attempted stabbing attacks.
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In February, two similar arrests were made within 24 hours after a 23-year-old Palestinian man and a 15-year-old teenager were separately found to be holding knives while attempting to enter the site
In January Border Police officers made similar arrests of a Palestinian man and woman in two separate incidents at the site, after finding knives on their persons.
A Palestinian teen was arrested trying to enter the holy site with a knife in December, and in November two 17-year-old Palestinians were also detained after each attempted to smuggle a knife into the site in two separate incidents a day apart.
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Jacob Magid contributed to this report.
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