According to Israeli police, two of the six Palestinians who escaped from a maximum-security prison this week in a daring prison raid that has captivated the country's attention have been apprehended.
Shortly after, Palestinian terrorists in Gaza fired a rocket into Israel, which was intercepted by Israeli air defenses, according to the Israeli military.
The rocket strike, which is thought to be linked to the re-arrest, was not claimed by any Palestinian group.
According to police, the two were apprehended on Friday night in the Arab-majority city of Nazareth in northern Israel. Mahmoud Aradeh and Yakub Kadari, members of the Islamic Jihad militant group serving life sentences, were named in the announcement. They didn't put up any resistance.
According to Israeli media sources, two suspicious people were reported to police by a civilian.
A video circulating on social media shows Israeli police shackling a man from his feet to the backseat of a police vehicle and demanding his name.
When questioned if he is one of the escapees, the man, dressed in jeans and a green T-shirt, calmly introduces himself as Kadari and responds, "yes." Kadari had been sentenced to two life sentences for attempted murder and planting a bomb.
On Monday, six Palestinians tunneled out of the Gilboa jail, sparking a search across Israel and the West Bank.
For Palestinians, the fugitives were "heroes" who had managed to avoid serving several life terms. Many people take satisfaction in fighting Israel and participating in attacks on Israeli soldiers and even civilians.
In the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Palestinians held sit-ins and happy celebrations to commemorate the prisoner's release.
Four members of the militant group Islamic Jihad and Zakaria Zubeidi, a well-known militant leader from the second Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s, were among the escapees. The detainees are all from Jenin, a nearby city in the occupied West Bank.
On Friday, as soon as the news of the two fugitives' apprehension was announced, the Palestinian social media space was flooded with harsh remarks expressing disappointment and dismay.
The Palestinian Authority did not respond immediately, but Abdeltaif al-Qanou, a spokesman for the Gaza-ruling Hamas movement, said the inmates had “scored a victory and harmed the prestige of the Israeli security system” despite their re-arrest.
The breakout has highlighted serious vulnerabilities in Israel's jail system, sparking days of rage and finger-pointing. Tensions between Israel and the Palestinians have also risen as a result.
