Police searching for escaped Palestinian detainee

A Palestinian man escaped police custody on Sunday afternoon, hours after he was arrested for illegally residing inside Israel.

The suspect, who is not considered by the IDF to be a security risk, was not wearing handcuffs as he was transported to the Ofer prison near Ramallah.

The man escaped from a police vehicle while guards were distracted with his paperwork at the entrance to the prison.

According to a Border Police press release on Sunday, the man’s identity is known, and an intensive search for him has begun.