Israel says arrests 2 suspects over deadly Elad attack

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - Israeli forces arrested two Palestinians accused of carrying out a deadly axe attack in the city of Elad, in which three Israelis were killed, according to the military.

A military statement said the two suspects -- 19-year-old As’sad al-Rifai and 20-year-old Emad Subhi Abu Shqeir -- were arrested in a forested area close to Elad.

According to the statement, the two suspects were from Rumana in the West Bank city of Jenin.

They were arrested after a massive four-day manhunt involving special forces and helicopters.

There was no claim of responsibility for Thursday’s attack, which came amid rising tensions across the Palestinian territories since last month as a result of repeated Israeli arrest campaigns in the occupied West Bank and daily settler incursions into the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in East Jerusalem.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community.