Palestinian stabs Israeli at West Bank’s Ariel Junction

A Palestinian man stabbed an Israeli Sunday afternoon at a bus stop on the side of a West Bank highway near the settlement of Ariel.

The incident took place on Route 5, just east of Ariel, in the northern West Bank.

The 25-year-old victim was moderately hurt with stab wounds to his upper body. He was taken to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikvah for treatment.

According to Channel 2, the suspect approached the bus stop wearing a Jewish skullcap and attacked the victim.

The suspect initially fled the scene, prompting IDF troops to block the entrances to several nearby Palestinian villages in order to help search for the perpetrator of the attack.

After a manhunt by police and the IDF, Israeli soldiers apprehended a suspect in the nearby village of Marda.

The man was identified by the Shin Bet as Tamer Khadir, 26, of the village of Beita, near Nablus. He has no prior record, the internal security agency said in a statement. He was taken in for questioning.

Sunday’s attack took place as dozens of Palestinian workers arrived at the junction, returning to the West Bank after working in Israeli cities during the day.

Earlier on Sunday, Israeli security forces thwarted an attempted stabbing at a checkpoint in Hebron, near the Tomb of the Patriarchs. A Palestinian woman who pulled out a knife at the site was shot dead. No Israelis were reported injured in that incident.