Israeli security forces captured the two Palestinian men who carried out a deadly terror attack in the central Israel city of Elad. The men were apprehended and arrested on Sunday, four days after they murdered three men as Israel’s Independence Day was drawing to a close.
As’sad al-Rafai, 19, and Emad Subhi Abu Shqeir, 20, from the Jenin area in the West Bank, were found after an extensive manhunt hiding in a wooded area near Elad. Security forces had feared that the men would attempt another attack on Israelis. They reportedly have been transferred to Israel’s Shin Bet security agency for questioning. One of the men reportedly had left a will in which he stated he was committing the attack due to Israel’s incursions on the Temple Mount/Al Aqsa compound.
The men, armed with an axe and a firearm, attacked passersby on Thursday night in the ultra-Orthodox city of Elad, about 10 miles east of Tel Aviv, killing three people and wounding four others. The victims killed in the attack were Yonatan Havakuk, Boaz Gol, and Oren Ben Yiftah. They reportedly entered Israel through a breach in the security fence, and hired Ben Yiftah of Lod to drive them to Elad. Ben Yiftah had driven the men in the past when they worked in Israel, and did not know that they were in Israel illegally or of their terrorist intentions. The terrorists killed Ben Yiftah upon arrival in Elad, the Kan public broadcaster reported.