Israel’s military arrested around 80 Palestinians in the West Bank, including members of the militant group Hamas, early on Sunday as part of efforts to locate three teenagers, including an American, believed abducted in the territory while hitchhiking home.
“Palestinian terrorists will not feel safe, will not be able to hide and will feel the heavy arm of the Israeli military capabilities,” spokesman lt Col Peter lerner said.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds the Western-backed Palestinian Authority responsible for the Thursday night disappearance of the teens.
The Palestinians’ self-rule Government, which administers 38 per cent of the West Bank, has rejected blame, saying the teens went missing in territory under full Israeli control.
Israeli-Palestinian tensions were already strained, in part because of the recent formation of a Palestinian Unity Government that has the backing of the Islamic militant group Hamas.
Hamas, branded a terror group by the West for its long history of attacks on Israeli civilians, has been involved in the kidnapping of Israelis in the past.