Palestinian teen shot dead after trying to stab police in West Bank town
Officers stop 14-year-old suspect, who then pulls knife during questioning; no officers hurt; military arrests 33 wanted Palestinians in overnight raids near Nablus
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Border Police officers shot dead a Palestinian teenager who attempted to stab them in the West Bank town of al-Eizariya on the outskirts of East Jerusalem on Monday.
Police said officers stopped the 14-year-old suspect, and during questioning, he drew a knife and attempted to stab them.
The officers opened fire, killing the suspect, police said.
No officers were hurt in the incident.
Police later published footage of the attempted stabbing attack.
In the clip, the Palestinian assailant can be seen approaching Border Police officers who sought to question him, before pulling a knife and trying to stab them.
The officers then open fire at the suspect, who tries to flee before collapsing. He was pronounced dead a short while later.
Police identified the assailant as a resident of East Jerusalem.
Separately, the Israel Defense Forces said Monday that troops detained 33 wanted Palestinians during overnight raids across the West Bank.
One of the terror suspects, arrested in the No. 1 refugee camp near Nablus, is accused of previously shooting at troops, the IDF said.
Tensions in Israel and the West Bank have been high since October 7, when some 3,000 terrorists burst through the Gaza border into Israel in a Hamas-led attack, killing at least 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and seizing 253 hostages. Israel responded with an aerial campaign and subsequent ground operation with the goal of destroying Hamas and freeing the hostages.
On Thursday, soldiers thwarted an attempted car-ramming attack at Givat Ha’avot, near Hebron. Troops shot at the culprit, injuring him and taking him for questioning.
Also last week, a soldier was seriously wounded in a terror attack in Haifa when a man rammed into him with his vehicle outside a military base in the city, at the same time as soldiers foiled a stabbing attack outside the West Bank village of Tekoa, which lies near an Israeli settlement of the same name.
Since October 7, troops have arrested more than 3,000 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,350 affiliated with Hamas. According to the Palestinian Authority health ministry, more than 300 West Bank Palestinians have been killed in that time.
The Israel Defense Forces has continued to operate throughout the West Bank and police have been on high alert in Israel, in light of concerns about a possible escalation of violence.
