Israelis nab 2 more escapees; 2 on loose

JERUSALEM — Israeli police said Saturday that they have arrested four of the six Palestinians who broke out of a maximum-security prison this week — including a famed militant leader whose exploits over the years have made him a well-known figure in Israel.

The arrests moved Israel closer to closing an embarrassing episode that exposed deep flaws in its prison system and turned the fugitive prisoners into Palestinian heroes. Late on Friday, Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket into Israel in an apparent sign of solidarity, drawing Israeli airstrikes in reprisal.

The four wanted men were caught in a pair of arrests in northern Israel.

Early on Saturday, police said they had caught two men, including Zakaria Zubeidi, hiding in a truck parking lot in the Arab town of Umm al-Ghanam.

The Israeli Haaretz news site, quoting an unidentified defense official, said Zubeidi and fellow fugitive Mohammed Aradeh had been hiding outdoors for some time. The source said the two escapees appeared to have received no help after their escape and had no planned route on where to go.

Earlier, two other prisoners were arrested in Nazareth, an Arab city in northern Israel just west of Umm al-Ghanam.

In a statement issued late Saturday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett praised the Israeli security forces for the arrests of the four fugitives, describing the search operation as “determined and persistent.”

In Gaza, Hamas’ armed wing pledged to include the six on the top of any future prisoner swap deal.

(AP/Israeli Police) Zakaria Zubeidi, one of the Palestinians who escaped from prison last week, is blindfolded after being recaptured Saturday in Umm al-Ghanam, Israel.