Israeli security forces diffused a "ticking time bomb" by taking out a Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist cell intent on carrying out an attack inside Israel, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Saturday.
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The premier made the statement following a meeting with the top brass of the Shin Bet security agency to assess the situation following several deadly terror attacks in Israel over the past week.
"We are in the midst of a team effort of all Israel's security services to put a halt to the wave of recent terrorist attacks and restore security to Israeli citizens," Bennett said in a video statement alongside Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
He predicted there will be "many more" attempted terrorist attacks.
"We are working to prevent them as we speak. Our people are taking action with tremendous courage, around the clock, in a hostile, violent environment," Bennett said, adding that he spoke to an unnamed senior counter-terrorism officer from the Yamam – Israel's national counter-terrorism unit – who was seriously wounded in the operation and wished him a speedy recovery.
Three other members of his counter-terrorism unit were wounded in the clash. The Yamam officers came under fire after trying to arrest the Islamic Jihad terrorists.
The Israel Police said the three terrorists were members of a cell that was involved in recent attacks against Israeli forces and were planning another attack that was thwarted during early Saturday's joint operation with the military and intelligence.
Live videos by witnesses on social media showed a crowd of Palestinians inspecting the scene of the clashes near the city of Jenin after the Israeli troops withdrew. The street was covered with bloodstains and the men chanted slogans calling for revenge.
Palestine TV reported that Israeli forces seized the bodies of the terrorists.
Saturday marked the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a month of dawn-to-dusk fasting, prayer and religious devotion for hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world. Within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Ramadan has often been a period of increased friction and confrontation.
Meanwhile, the Shin Bet had also received "hot warnings of further attacks," Channel 12 News reported Friday night.
In recent days, the Shin Bet has reportedly questioned some 200 Arab Israelis identified as being linked to the Islamic State jihadist group – arresting 15 and issuing warnings to the rest.
A separate Channel 13 News report said security forces have a list of 300 suspected ISIS supporters in Israel, and have arrested 45 of them.
The assailants in two of the recent attacks – a stabbing and car-ramming in Beersheba that killed four people, and a shooting in the northern Israeli city of Hadera in which two police officers were killed – had suspected ties to ISIS.
Channel 12 said the Shin Bet, IDF, and the Israel Police would form a joint task force to counter Palestinian incitement online as well.
According to the Channel 13 report, security officials were also concerned that the ISIS affiliate in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt could launch attacks on Israel.
On Friday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi vowed to "act in every way to stop" the terror attacks, and additional forces have been deployed to Judea and Samaria, the Gaza border, and major cities such as Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
With Saturday's deaths, seven Palestinians had been killed over three days, including two in a gun battle with IDF troops Thursday and one after he stabbed and wounded an Israeli on a bus in Judea and Samaria.
On Friday, a Palestinian man was killed by troops in Hebron, during clashes that erupted after mosque prayers. The IDF said soldiers shot a Palestinian who threw a firebomb at them.
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Also Friday, the Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said 36 Palestinians were hurt in weekly confrontations with Israeli forces elsewhere in Judea and Samaria. Protesters often throw rocks and firebombs at Israeli troops. Thirty-three of the injured were struck by rubber bullets and three by live rounds Friday, the Red Crescent said.
At the Al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israeli authorities said more than 30,000 people attended Friday prayers on the eve of Ramadan. There were no reports of protests or violence.
