A terrorist cell has been arrested in connection with a ramming attack on IDF soldiers near the village of Ya’bad, the IDF spokesperson said Monday after the information was cleared for release.
IDF and General Security Services (Shin Bet) agents arrested the suspects last month following a joint IDF, GSS and Border Guard Police operation following the attempted attack and shooting that took place on January 9, 2021, near Ya’bad.
The terror cell was taken into custody in the village of Qabatiye with the aid of Shin Bet intelligence during a widescale arrest operation by the IDF’s Duvdevan unit, a paratroop patrol and the special forces of the IDF Border Guard Police in the area monitored by the Menashe Territorial Brigade.
According to the initial investigation, the two terrorists who were in the vehicle that arrived at the scene were armed with a loaded Carlo-type submachine gun. They had planned to carry out a shooting attack on IDF forces operating in the area, investigators said.
During the attempted attack, the weapon fell from the terrorists’ vehicle and no shots were fired; fleeing the scene, the driver accelerated the vehicle and hit one of the soldiers instead.
The remand of the terrorists was extended at the request of the military prosecution until February 28, 2021, in order to allow time to file an indictment.