West Bank Sweep: Body Found, Weapons Seized, Man Freed

Israeli security forces carried out a series of raids and searches across the West Bank and central Israel over the weekend and into Monday, recovering a body, seizing weapons, and arresting several suspects.

Police said on Monday that the body of an Israeli resident of east Jerusalem in his 40s was found in the Wadi Rahal area near Bethlehem. Officers, forensic investigators, and IDF soldiers were dispatched to the scene and collected evidence. The body was to be transferred to the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute to determine the cause of death. Initial findings indicated the incident was criminal in nature rather than terror-related.

Overnight Sunday in Bethlehem, security forces arrested three suspects, one of whom police said was affiliated with Hamas. Acting on previously gathered intelligence, forces searched the homes of that suspect and another Bethlehem resident suspected of possessing weapons. A loaded hunting rifle, IDF uniforms, and various technological items were confiscated. Two suspects were taken to the Ma'ale Adumim police station for investigation into illegal weapons possession and unauthorized possession of military equipment.

Near Hebron on Sunday, a man in his 30s was arrested and found to be carrying a hunting rifle and a large amount of ammunition. Separately, police and Border Police officers found a cache of weapons in Kalansuwa, a majority-Arab city in central Israel, and made two arrests. A police explosives expert was dispatched to handle grenades found at the site. The seized items included a Kalashnikov rifle, three M-16 assault rifles, eight handguns, six fragmentation grenades, two stun grenades, thousands of rounds of ammunition, and three tactical vests. Police said the operation was part of an initiative to reduce violent crime in the Arab sector.

Over the weekend, police in Rahat freed a man found with his leg shackled to the floor of a home during an operation to locate illegal weapons. Preliminary findings indicated he had been chained by family members over his drug use. His brother was arrested and taken to the Rahat police station for questioning.