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Israeli security forces arrested four Palestinian Authority residents attempting to enter Israel illegally during a targeted enforcement operation near Jerusalem, including one man suspected of planning an imminent terrorist attack. An Israeli citizen accused of transporting two of the suspects was also taken into custody.

The arrests were made over the course of several hours during a joint operation by Israel Police and Border Police at the Tunnels Checkpoint and the a-Za’im Crossing.

In one case, officers stopped a vehicle that had aroused suspicion and conducted a search. Upon opening the trunk, they discovered two illegal infiltrators from the Arab city of Tulkarm concealed inside as they allegedly attempted to enter pre-1967 Israel unlawfully.

A preliminary security screening determined that one of the two men was a wanted terrorist sought for questioning on suspicion of planning an imminent terror attack and attempting to enter Israel to carry it out.

In a separate incident at the same checkpoints, officers thwarted another attempted illegal entry. Two additional Palestinian Authority residents, from the villages of Azariya and Za’atara, were arrested after they allegedly tried to pass through the checkpoint using forged Israeli identification cards.

Police also arrested the driver transporting the pair, an Israeli citizen and Jerusalem resident suspected of assisting the attempted illegal infiltration.

All five suspects were transferred to Israeli security authorities for further interrogation and investigation.