Terrorist detonates explosive near Ma'aleh Adumim checkpoint injuring police officer

Suspect seriously injured in attack, evacuated to hospital in Jerusalem.

Scene of attack near Ma'aleh Adumim
A woman detonated an explosive and lightly wounded a police officer near the A-Zaim checkpoint on the road between Ma'aleh Adumim and Jerusalem on Sunday morning.
The terrorist was seriously injured in the attack and was evacuated to hospital in Jerusalem with burns to her entire body, Magen David Adom said. The police officer suffered burns to his upper body and was evacuated to hospital with light injuries and in stable condition.
Police said a traffic police officer stopped the driver, who he thought was driving suspiciously, and approached the car to stop at the side of the road and then walked over to question her. The suspect then left the vehicle and the explosion occurred.
"The driver shouted 'Allah Hu Akbar' (God is great) and detonated an explosive device," a police spokeswoman said.
Contrary to the police account that there was a terror attack, Palestinian news agency Ma'an reported that a mechanical failure in the Palestinian woman's car caused the explosion. 
Eyewitnesses told Ma'an that an electrical problem in the car caused the airbag to explode, starting a fire in the car and causing the woman to scream.  
One of the witnesses said that the white powder seen in the photos at the scene of the incident is the material that the airbag emitted following its explosion.
The Shin Bet said the female terrorist who ignited a blast in her vehicle is a 31-year-old resident of east Jerusalem, who divided her time between Jericho and the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal Mukabar. She has no know security offenses or arests.
The woman attempted to ignite a gas tank in her car which flammable materials, while yelling "Allahu Akbar." She then tried to exit the vehicle. Other than the gas tank, there was no explosive device in her vehicle.
Security forces found hand-written notes in her possession that contained messages of support for "martyrs."

Stay updated with the latest news!

Subscribe to The Jerusalem Post Newsletter


The incident followed a surge since last week in Palestinian attacks on Israelis, mostly with crude weapons like knives and rocks, and a crackdown by Israeli security forces. Four Israelis and 24 Palestinians have been killed in 11 days of violence.