18-Mar-16: Two Friday afternoon terror attacks, and both are thwarted

It's a delightful Friday afternoon here in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, the conditions are optimal for the kind of lethal violence that plagues the lives of so many people wanting to do constructive and peaceable things.

Two attempts to stab Israelis in the West Bank were thwarted within minutes of each other Friday afternoon.

The first of two armed attacks occurred at the Sha'ar Binyamin industrial zone [Wikipedia]. Unless a person is hopelessly addled by hatred of Israelis and Jews, one of the things worth knowing about the location is that it is home to a large cluster of businesses where Israelis and Palestinians work co-operatively and profitably side by side. These businesses include many factories as well as a thriving Rami Levy supermarket that has been attacked by Arab-on-Israeli terrorists multiple times. We last posted about it a month ago; that attack cost the life of a young husband and father, Tuvia Weissman, as well as the lives of the Palestinian Arab savages who carried it out.

Security forces spotted two Arab youths this afternoon (Friday) around 3:00 pm getting out of a car with Palestinian Authority (PA) plates at the entrance to the industrial zone. Israel National News says their behavior as they walked toward the entrance aroused the suspicions of the forces, who promptly stopped them and, at gunpoint, carried out a body search. Turns out they were armed with knives, which in these times and these places invariably indicates an intention to kill. These attackers were lucky: they were arrested and are now being interrogated at the Binyamin police station. Police and IDF forces are searching for the car vehicle that brought them to the scene.

Minutes later, according to Times of Israel, a Palestinian Arab exited a vehicle near the Etzion Junction, scene of many Arab-on-Israeli attacks in the past half year. Today's attacker attempted to stab IDF soldiers stationed at the traffic circle, and was shot and killed in the attempt. There are no reports of other casualties.

Though there is no confirmation at this stage, we see social media reports [here and here for instance] that the attacker was a female. No indication of age. Ma'an, a Palestinian Arab news source, calls the attacker a man in his twenties. Allegedly. It identifies him as "Mahmud Ahmad Abu Fanunah, 21, from the Hebron district." No confirmation at this stage.