by Anna Ahronheim
Four of the six fugitives who escaped Gilboa Prison last week were found following a massive manhunt led by Israel Police’s Counterterrorism Unit.
Four of the fugitives who escaped from Gilboa Prison last week were recaptured in northern Israel over the weekend by the Israel Police Counterterrorism Unit.
Zakaria Zubeidi
and Mahmoud Ardah were found in a parking lot in the village of Umm
el-Ghanam early on Saturday, hours after Yakoub Mohammed Qadri and
Mohammed Ardah were located in Nazareth on Friday night.
Munadil Nafayat and Iham Kahamji remain at large.
Police said that Zubeidi and Ardah were found hiding under the trailer of a truck.
Shortly after the arrest of Qadri and Mohammed Ardah, thousands of Palestinians violently protested
across the West Bank and clashed with IDF troops. A rocket was also
launched from the Gaza Strip and was intercepted by the Iron Dome
missile defense system. The IDF responded with an airstrike against Hamas military infrastructure.
Two of the Palestinians who escaped from Gilboa prison were arrested tonight in the city of Nazareth. Police say Yaquob Qadiri and Mohammed al-Arida were located after a citizen reported to the police that he had been approached by them asking for help and food. pic.twitter.com/ZY1CLAquBv
— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim)
According to reports, Qadri and Mohammed Ardah were located after a
Nazareth resident told police that he had seen two men digging through
trash searching for food.
The family of the person who reportedly
told police about the fugitives has received death threats and
subsequently denied he gave the tip-off, according to Ynet.
“I
saw them, they looked scared, hungry and humiliated,” an Umm el-Ghanam
resident told Ynet. “A helicopter and a drone flew overhead all night
long, we didn’t get any sleep because of the noise in the village.”
Another resident told Ynet that Zubeidi and Ardah “did not resist” when officers arrested them.
In
addition to the help of citizens, the fugitives were captured through
the efforts by the police’s Counterterrorism Unit, as well as IDF
trackers from the Mirol Reserve Unit.
The
unit, which was formed following the abduction and murder of three
Israeli teenagers in 2014, managed to identify the footprints of the
fugitives, and a packet of cigarettes and a can of soda at around 10:30
p.m. They then identified the route that Zubeidi and Ardah took to the
truck parking lot in Umm el-Ghanam.
“We
are doing everything to locate the escaped prisoners,” Sgt. First Class
(res.) Roi Simon, the head of a tracking unit, was quoted as saying.
“The unit has not ceased its work and is continuing in the effort until
all the escaped terrorists are caught.”
Defense
establishment sources speculated on Saturday that it is increasingly
likely the two remaining escapees have split up, according to Israeli
media. The sources also reportedly said that one of the two is still in
Israel, while the other may have crossed into the West Bank.
IDF
Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen.Aviv Kohavi took part in a situational
assessment on Saturday night with other security officials regarding the
continued manhunt.
Defense sources said that one of the two is still in Israel, while the other has crossed into the West Bank.
Prime
Minister Naftali Bennett, who is religious and observers the Jewish
Shabbat, met with police and military officials for a situational
assessment in northern Israel shortly after Zubeidi was caught. Public
Security Minister Omer Barlev praised the security forces for capturing
the escaped prisoners and vowed the remaining fugitives would also be
caught.
The sources also reportedly said that one of the two is still in Israel, while the other may have crossed into the West Bank.
Five
of the escapees – Munadil Nafayat, Iham Kahamji, Yakoub Mohammed Qadri
and brothers Mahmoud and Mohammed Ardah – were identified as members of
Palestinian Islamic Jihad and from the Jenin area.
The
sixth, Zakaria Zubeidi, was a prominent leader in Fatah’s al-Aqsa
Martyrs Brigades during the Second Intifada. He was later granted an
amnesty but was arrested again in 2019.
They
escaped from Gilboa Prison, some 30 km. away, on Monday. Though
security forces initially thought that they were being helped following
their escape, it is now believed that the fugitives did not have any
outside assistance.
Following
their arrest, they were transferred to the Shin Bet internal security
agency for additional questioning. The Palestinian Prisoners Association
said that the men will be taken to Nazareth District Court to have
their detention extended on Saturday night. The Association said that
they were not allowed to meet with their lawyers.
Shortly
after the arrest of Qadri and Mohammed Ardah, thousands of Palestinians
violently protested across the West Bank and clashed with IDF troops
throughout the day. A rocket was also launched from the Gaza Strip and
was intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system. The IDF
responded with an airstrike against a Hamas military infrastructure.
Hamas
Spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said that "the arrest of the heroic prisoners
is another round in the open and ongoing battle with the occupation.
What happened strengthens the Palestinian people to continue the
struggle against the occupation and support of prisoners."
Defense
Minister Benny Gantz said Friday that Israel had information on the
locations of the six men and that there was “intelligence and
operational leads” that would help their recapture.
“Ultimately,
we will get our hands on the people who escaped,” Gantz said during a
visit to the Salem military base in the northern West Bank’s Jezreel
Valley. “Determined work is being carried out with proper collaboration
between the different security branches and we will continue this
activity and ensure security for this area.”
“I
hope the day ends quietly, but in any case, the IDF is prepared for any
development,” he said, adding that Israel is working alongside the
Palestinian Authority to find the escapees.
“We
must understand we’re talking about six people out of millions living
here,” Gantz added. “We have to be able to handle these six and those
who assisted them without disturbing the balance.”
Israeli
security forces were placed on high alert ahead of a planned “day of
rage” in solidarity with the six fugitives. Hundreds of Palestinians
clashed with Israeli security forces overnight on Friday in some 10
locations in the West Bank.
Earlier
on Friday Palestinian media reported that IDF troops arrested five
family members of the escaped Gilboa prisoners, including Raafat Gawadra
and Youssef Qadri, the brother of escaped prisoner Yaquob Qadiri.
On Wednesday, soldiers arrested the father of escaped prisoner Munadel Enfayat after searching his home.
Soldiers
also raided the town of Arrabe and searched several houses. Two of the
fugitives, brothers Mahmoud and Mohammed Ardah hail from the town. The
soldiers arrested three members of the Ardah family, the sources said.
Jerusalem Post staff contributed to this report.
Anna Ahronheim
Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/two-prisoners-that-escaped-from-gilboa-prison-caught-in-nazareth-679158
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