IDF: M-16 stored under child’s bed

Three arrested on suspicion of terrorism

IDF, Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and Israel Police forces arrested three Palestinian men on suspicion of carrying out ten shootings targeting northern West Bank settlements and IDF forces in April. The shootings resulted in property damage but no casualties.

During the raid, an M-16 that had been stored under a child’s bed was seized, according to the IDF. The settlements of Shavei Shomron and Shaked were allegedly targeted by the three men.

“The shooting attacks, which occurred frequently and at night, posed a significant threat to civilians and security forces in Samaria,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.

According to the Shin Bet, the three men allegedly planned to target Israeli vehicles in the attacks.

They also uncovered the will of one of the suspects, because the man thought he would likely die as a result of the attacks. In the coming days, indictments will be filed against the suspects.

The Shin Bet named two of the arrested suspects as Shafiq Mahmud Shafiq, 26, and his cousin Louis Ahmed Shafiq Za’abaneh, a 34-year-old lawyer linked to the PFLP, the second-largest group in the PLO after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s ruling Fatah party. Both suspects are residents of the Palestinian town of Fahma in the Jenin region. The third suspect’s name was not released. AN M-16 that was stored under this ‘Dora the Explorer’ bed was seized during the raid in April.