Israel Police's special operations unit, in a joint operation with the IDF, busted a major weapons smuggling attempt in southern Israel earlier this month, the units revealed on Monday.
Multiple units, both ground units and airborne, from Israel Police and the IDF worked in tandem on August 1 to arrest a man who had been transferred weapons over the Jordanian border in northern Israel.
Two additional suspects, one of which is suspected of being the head of the smuggling network, were arrested shortly thereafter. They had seen the first smuggler getting arrested and fled the scene. Following major intelligence efforts and a large police chase, the two were arrested near Ben-Gurion Airport.
The weapons, according to the security forces' suspicions, were intended for criminal use in the Negev and Hebron areas.
"This is a real arms race and we are working night and day in a continuous fight against this challenge," said special operations unit commander Ronen Kalfon. "It is clear to us that any such weapon can easily be used to kill innocent people."
"This is a real arms race and we are working night and day in a continuous fight against this challenge,"
Special operations unit commander Ronen Kalfon
The end of the investigation
The investigation ended on Monday and a prosecutor's statement will be filed to the court later in the day for the three of them, one of which is a resident of the Palestinian Authority and the other two residents of east Jerusalem, all of which are in their 30s.