The weapons were confiscated as part of Israel Police's continuing struggle against violence and illegal possession of weapons in order to prevent the use of arms during criminal actions or celebrations such as weddings during which people have been seriously injured and killed.
Police conducted a months-long undercover investigation before the arrests were carried out. Some 150 police officers, detectives, Border Police and police canines carried out the operation which was one of the largest carried out in east Jerusalem in recent years.
During the operation, large stockpiles of weapons, equipment and ammunition were found in Shuafat, including five guns, ten magazines, weapon parts, ceramic vests and other military equipment.
The 11 suspects, residents of Shuafat, were arrested on suspicion of possessing and selling weapons illegally, alongside other crimes.
"This is a large operation that matured after weeks of deployment, intelligence gathering and extensive investigation. The large combination of police forces is what led to the success of the operation, the arrest of the suspects and the detection of the many weapons," said Israel Police.