Israeli security forces apprehended two terrorists, including a senior terrorist in the dismantled "Lion's Den" network, during counterterrorism operations, the IDF, Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), and Israel Police said in a joint statement on Wednesday.
Additional weapons were also confiscated.
The IDF, Shin Bet, and the Lahav 433 "Gidonim" Unit apprehended Muhammad Bana, who was previously a senior member of the Nablus terrorist organization, and was armed with an M-16 rifle and a spray grenade, the statement said.
Bana had previously been involved in planning attacks toward Israeli soldiers in the West Bank.
During his apprehension, he attempted to flee and was shot in his leg.
Additionally, the IDF’s Duvdevan unit, following the direction of the ISA, detained Khalil Hanbali, a terrorist wanted by security forces for his involvement in multiple shooting attacks, as well as for his role as a weapons supplier.
The terrorists were taken for questioning and their weapons were transferred for further processing.
Who are the Lions' Den?
The terrorist group, centered in Nablus’s Old City, emerged in 2022, according to the European Council on Foreign Relations.
Lions’ Den reportedly benefits from cooperation and coordination with other Palestinian terror groups - namely, Palestinian Islamic Jihad‘s al-Quds Brigades, Fatah‘s al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, and Hamas's Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades.
In October 2022, Lions’ Den claimed responsibility for several drive-by shootings in the Nablus area and an attack on the West Bank settlement of Har Bracha - targeting both Israeli civilians and military personnel.
The terror group has also been responsible for the killing of a number of Palestinians, according to the US State Department. In September 2022, Palestinian civilians were killed in the crossfire between the Lions’ Den and the Palestinian Authority Security Forces in Nablus.
The group also claimed to have executed a “traitor” in 2023, believing him to have been an Israeli spy. A security source in Nablus told AFP that the man was shot dead in the city’s Old City. Some reports have claimed the man was being blackmailed to provide information for Israel as the state had footage of him engaging in sexual relations with another man. However, the reports couldn’t be verified.
Danielle Greyman-Kennard contributed to this report.