Shin Bet denies reports Dolev terror cell caught

The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) has denied reports that security forces arrested the terror cell believed to be behind the killing of Rina Shnerb on Friday near the West Bank settlement of Dolev, despite comments pouring in by politicians.

Yisrael Beytenu chair Avigdor Liberman wrote on his Twitter account that security forces have caught the terrorists behind the deadly terror attack.

“Congratulations to security forces and IDF soldiers who caught the vile terrorists who murdered Rina Shnerb — may her memory be blessed — and injured her father, Rabbi Eitan, and her brother, Dvir,” he wrote before deleting the tweet.

Blue and White chairman and candidate for prime minister, Lt.-Gen. (res.) Benny Gantz commended the security forces, saying it “sent a strong message to our enemies once again – we will chase you and we will find you.”

Yamina Party head Ayelet Shaked also tweeted that “we heard about the capture of the murderers while I was meeting Shira Shnerb and her family.”

On Friday, an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated at the Ein Buvin spring, killing 17-year-old Rina Shnerb and seriously wounding her father, Rabbi Eitan Shnerb, and brother Dvir.

According to Palestinian media, four men said to be involved in the attack were arrested near the Palestinian city of Ramallah early on Monday morning.

An IDF Spokesperson told The Jerusalem Post that the military had no comment on the reports.

Several Palestinians were arrested by Israel over the weekend and on Sunday the IDF confiscated a white vehicle from the village of Ein Arik where two men had been arrested the previous day. Other raids took place in the villages of Ein Qiniya and Beitunya. During the raids, IDF troops are also said to have confiscated surveillance cameras from businesses in the area.

An attack of this kind is an unusual occurrence in the West Bank, where terrorists tend to carry out shooting, ramming or knife attacks. It is the third terrorist attack in the West Bank this month.

Last month, the Shin Bet announced that it had foiled a series of attempts by the military wing of Hamas to establish terrorist cells in the West Bank and that it had arrested an explosives expert who entered Israel with a humanitarian permit for medical treatment.

“The military wing of the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip continues to invest considerable efforts in establishing terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank, with the aim of promoting terrorist attacks in Israel aimed at undermining regional stability,” a senior Shin Bet officer said at the time.