A weapons cache was seized and a terror operation was averted over the Sabbath by the alert response of police and military personnel at the security checkpoint near El Khader, which is north of the town of Efrat in Gush Etzion.
Israeli police and IDF Etzion Regional Brigade forces confiscated the arms after the haul was discovered during a routine search of a vehicle driven by an Arab resident of the Palestinian Authority.
The suspect was allegedly on his way to transfer the cache to a hiding place, IDF officials said.
Among the arms seized were three assault rifles, two ammunition magazines and a large quantity of bullets.
“This was a successful continuation of an operation that began in Dehaishe this morning,” the IDF said. “The suspect was arrested on charges of weapons possession and was transferred to security personnel for further questioning.
“This activity is part of the campaign against illegal weapons in Judea and Samaria. Since the beginning of 2016, more than 350 weapons have been seized, and 32 arms manufacturing facilities have been shut down.”