IDF forces arrested two Arabs carrying an assault rifle hidden in a coat near the Jewish village of Otniel in Judea. The two were taken in for questioning by security forces.
"Security forces will continue working constantly to thwart terror attacks" said an IDF spokesperson.
Otniel is located near Hevron and has been devastated by terrorism in the past. In July 2016, Otniel resident Mickey Mark was killed when terrorists shot him while he drove on Route 60. In January 2016, resident Dafna Meir was killed by 16-year-old Murad Bader Abdullah Adais when he broke into her house and stabbed her in front of her children.
In December 2002, terrorists killed four students from the Otniel Yeshiva when they opened fire in the yeshiva dining room while the students ate their festive Shabbat eve meal.
An Otniel resident told Arutz Sheva that despite Otniel's history of tragedies, he and his neighbors do not feel the danger on a daily basis. "I've lived here since I was a baby," he said. "I feel safe here, Otniel is a very peaceful place to live."