After Manhunt, Teen Suspect Arrested in Jordan Valley Stabbing Attack

The IDF Spokesperson said Sunday evening that, following a joint manhunt by security forces, IDF troops arrested the suspect who carried out the stabbing attack Sunday morning in the al-Auja area, in the Jordan Valley and Valleys Brigade sector. The suspect’s arrest was made possible through intelligence guidance and IDF and Shin Bet resources deployed as part of the search.

The IDF said that "security forces will continue to close the circle and act against every terrorist who harms or attempts to harm Israeli citizens and IDF troops. The suspect has been transferred for further questioning by security forces."

IDF forces also operated near the suspect’s home in an effort to locate him and questioned his family members. According to a security source, during the initial questioning of the 16-year-old suspect, he said that he was the one who carried out the attack. He was transferred for further questioning by security officials and the central unit of the Israel Police’s Judea and Samaria District.

Earlier Sunday, the suspect stabbed Elchanan Chanania, a career soldier, moderately wounding him. The attack took place at the entrance to the village of al-Auja, in the Jordan Valley, when Chanania stopped his car near a convenience store. He and his family were on their way to Tiberias to celebrate his wedding anniversary. Waiting in the car were Chanania’s pregnant wife, their two daughters, and her father. They were not injured.

The injured man’s two brothers, Yosef and Shlomo, spoke at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, saying that Elchanan had taken leave from his base for the vacation: "He now has a fracture in his shoulder and internal bleeding. They are trying to stabilize it. He is in a great deal of pain and finds it difficult to speak. He cannot manage to say what he wants. They stopped to buy cigarettes, and when he returned to the car, the terrorist was there waiting for him. When he saw my brother turn his back, he jumped on him and stabbed him several times in the body. He struggled with him. He was terrified for the children. His wife was screaming too. His father-in-law, who was in the car, got out, and the terrorist fled. The older daughter saw everything that happened."