Jerusalem District Police and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) thwarted a planned combined terror attack intended to occur during Ramadan in Jerusalem, a joint statement confirmed on Sunday.
The suspect, a resident of Shuafat refugee camp in his 20s, was arrested approximately a month ago and is alleged to have prepared pipe bombs and purchased knives in order to carry out multiple attacks at various locations across Jerusalem.
An investigation revealed that he planned to place explosives on the light rail or a bus, or in a restaurant in south Jerusalem.
The suspect had begun taking “concrete steps to carry out these plans,” the police expanded, by studying how to construct explosives and deciding on which method of detonation to use in the attack.
At one stage, he acquired pipes, matchboxes, firework fuses, and other materials to construct pipe bombs, and at a later stage, he decided to carry out a ramming and stabbing attack. He began taking driving lessons and purchasing large knives, which he had in his home, the police stated.
He also decided to purchase a vehicle to run people over with before planning to stab the ramming victims with knives, the police continued.
Shortly before Ramadan began at the end of February, he decided to carry out the attack at a central bus stop in Jerusalem.
The investigation also revealed that the suspect “aspired to become a martyr” and frequently listened to Quranic verses to motivate himself to kill Jews.
The Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court extended his detention several times, and an indictment is expected to be filed against him by the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office, the police confirmed.
Precedent of attempted attacks
Israel Police and Border Police also arrested four teenagers in east Jerusalem who made multiple pipe bombs and placed them under a light rail station in Jerusalem.
Ramadan is known to be a time of heightened tensions and radicalized activity within the Arab community of east Jerusalem. In the build-up to this years holy Islamic month, Israel Police noted that terrorist organizations exploit Ramadan to “incite and disseminate misleading narratives about events in Jerusalem, especially in the Old City and on the Temple Mount.”.
