Two Arabs, both aged 22 and residents of Jerusalem’s Shuafat neighborhood, were arrested late Thursday night after they were identified by police and Border Patrol forces lurking between the light rail stations of Beit Hanina and Shuafat, carrying slingshots and stones. 

Additional police and border forces had recently been stationed in the area to help eradicate the widespread violence in Jerusalem that has been labeled a “silent intifada.”

The police approached the two men, who began to flee. After a footchase through the alleys of Shuafat, the Arabs entered one of the houses, in an attempt to hide. The police came into the building and arrested the two men. 

The suspects will be taken Friday morning for a remand hearing at the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court to discuss the length of their detention. 

There is a high alert in Jerusalem following the attempted assassination of Temple Mount activist Yehuda Glick Wednesday night by terrorist Mu’taz Hijazi, a resident of Abu Tor. 

Hijazi was killed in a gunfight by security forces after shooting Glick. His funeral was held around midnight on Thursday and was attended by 45 family members, under heavy security for fear of disturbances. Israel Security Agency (ISA, or Shin Bet) is investigating whether family or friends helped him in committing the attempted murder of Glick or other attacks.

As a result of the incident, and the decision to allow Muslims to pray on the Temple Mount Friday, about 3,000 police officers have been deployed throughout the city. 

The high alert is also a result of the decision by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party to formally declare Friday a “day of rage” in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria. 

In addition to the two arrests in Jerusalem, IDF soldiers arrested early Friday morning three Arab residents of Samaria suspected of involvement in riots and throwing petrol bombs at civilians and security forces.

One was arrested in the village of Zababdeh, located south of Jenin, and the other two were arrested near Shechem (Nablus). The three men were taken in for questioning.