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Hebron / AFP
Israeli forces have sealed off the West Bank home of a Palestinian accused of helping plan an attack in Tel Aviv that left four Israelis dead, the Israeli army and residents said on Thursday. The army said the home of Younes Zein, 22, in Yatta, south of the flashpoint city of Hebron, was sealed off overnight. Zein “assisted in the planning and supplied the weapons for the lethal attack at the Sarona market on June 8, 2016,†a spokeswoman said. The attack saw two cousins, Mohammad Makhamrah and Khaled Makhamrah, walk into a popular Tel Aviv cafe wearing black suits and open fire on customers at random. Three people were shot dead, while a fourth died of a heart attack and 15 others were wounded.
According to the Shin Bet domestic security agency, Zein was supposed to have taken part in the attack but did not participate, confessing however to providing the other two with weapons.
The Makhamrah cousins as well as Zein are facing charges at the Tel Aviv district court of murder, conspiracy to murder and attempted murder. Palestinian witnesses said the army poured concrete into Zein’s single-room block adjacent to the family home. Minor clashes broke out, with the army using tear gas to disperse Palestinians. No casualties were reported.