At the end of a 12-hour daylight operation in the Jordan Valley Regional Brigade on Wednesday, five terrorists, including a high-ranking terrorist, were killed in an exchange of fire and an Israeli airstrike.

Jointly, the Israel Defense Forces, the Duvdevan Special Forces, the Kfir Brigade, the 636th Reconnaissance Battalion, the Matilan Counter-Terrorism Unit of the Border Police, the Metzada Tactical Unit of the Prison Service and the Shin Bet conducted a 12-hour counter-terrorist operation in the area of ​​the villages of Tubas, Tammun and Far’a Camp in the northern part of Judea and Samaria.

The operation was carried out following the recent escalation of violence in the Jordan Valley and amid concerns about arms smuggling across the border with Jordan.

Recently, there have been several armed attacks in this area, including an armed attack on the settlement of Beka’ot and a gun attack in which Yonatan Deutsch died earlier this week.

The 12-hour operation was named “Operation Jonathan’s Bow” in memory of Deutsch, who had recently been discharged from military service and was traveling on Route 90, which runs north-south through the Jordan Valley.

The focus was on a group of villages in the northern Jordan Valley region of Samaria, which the Israeli military called the “Pentagon of Villages.”

Also wounded in the gun attack that killed Deutsch was Anas Jaramnah, a Palestinian father of two daughters from the village of Muqeible. He was the one who informed an IDF patrol about the attack.

During Wednesday’s operation, Israeli Air Force fighter jets carried out several air strikes on the villages of Tammun and Tubas for the first time in the Jordan Valley region, killing four armed terrorists.

In the initial stages of the operation, the armed forces carried out a series of deceptions to lure armed terrorist groups into attacking the armed forces. After they managed to attract the attention of the terrorists and opened fire on them, the latter engaged in a firefight that also involved the IAF airstrike.

The militants eliminated a wanted high-ranking terrorist and exchanged fire with other terrorists in the area. Five terrorists were killed in the Israeli military operation.

The forces seized five M-16 and “Carlo” rifles and confiscated other weapons, ammunition and military equipment they found in the area.

During the operation, the forces arrested three wanted persons suspected of terrorist activities and handed them over to the security forces for further questioning. They discovered several explosive devices along with the suspects.

During the operation, a military vehicle, type David, ran over an explosive device, causing moderate injuries to two soldiers and minor injuries to two others. The soldiers were evacuated for medical treatment and their families were informed.

This was the 20th major operation of this kind that the brigade carried out last year.

A senior security official told Ynet News: “The Jordan Valley, once a quiet area, is now facing significant security problems. The recent increase in terrorist activities, especially the smuggling of standard weapons, poses a serious threat to the stability of the region.”