Israel captures Palestinians who killed 3 in stabbing attack

Israeli police said Sunday that forces captured two Palestinian attackers who killed three people in a stabbing attack last week.

Israel launched a massive manhunt for the assailants, who after carrying out the stabbing rampage, fled the scene. Residents were asked to be on alert and not to pick up hitchhikers.

The stabbing on Thursday, Israel's Independence Day, was the latest in a series of deadly assaults deep inside the country in recent weeks. It came as Israeli-Palestinian tensions were already heightened by violence at a major holy site in Jerusalem sacred to Jews and Muslims.

Police did not immediately offer details of where and how the assailants were captured.

Police identified the attackers as 19- and 20-year-old men from the town of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, which has re-emerged as a militant bastion in the latest wave of violence — the worst Israel has seen in years. Several of the attackers in the recent violence have come from Jenin.

At least 18 Israelis have been killed in five attacks since March, including another stabbing rampage in southern Israel, two shootings in the Tel Aviv area, and a shooting last weekend in a West Bank settlement.

Nearly 30 Palestinians have died in violence — most of whom had carried out attacks or were involved in confrontations with Israeli forces in the West Bank. But an unarmed woman and two apparent bystanders were also among those killed and rights groups say Israel often uses excessive force.