Security forces started search operation Wednesday morning For a Palestinian man who snatched a police officer’s rifle in a Palestinian town in the southern West Bank, officials said.
According to Israel Police, the suspect was stopped by traffic police at al-Fawr Junction – near the city of the same name and the West Bank city of Hebron – and began questioning him for unspecified reasons.
“During interrogation, the driver was asked to reveal his identity. The driver of the vehicle grabbed the M16 weapon of one of the officers and dragged the officer and began driving until the weapon separated from his body, police said in a statement.
Two security camera videos of the incident showed an officer removing the shoulder strap of the rifle from his body and pushing the weapon into a car window, before the driver took off.
It was not immediately clear whether the suspect grabbed the weapon or got stuck in the car.
Officials said the army, along with police forces, launched a search for the suspect, who is believed to have fled to the general Hebron area.
According to Hebrew-language media reports, the man turned himself in to Palestinian Authority security forces with the weapon, which will be returned to Israel.
Another angle to the weapons snatching incident near Hebron pic.twitter.com/THj1x6a2mS
— Emanuel (Manny) Fabian (@manniefabian) 8 June 2022
Police said the suspect’s identity was known to law enforcement officials.
Tensions between Israel and the Palestinians have risen sharply in recent months in the backdrop of repeated terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank that killed 19 people.
The Israeli military has intensified activities in the West Bank to crack down on escalating violence. Israeli defense forces said on Tuesday night 21 Palestinians were arrested on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities.
The military raids have led to clashes in which at least 39 Palestinians have been killed since mid-March, many of them involved in gunfights with Israeli soldiers or participants in violent clashes, and others apparently unrelated.
