FILE - In this Tuesday, March 17, 2015 file photo, a Palestinian woman scuffles with Israeli border policemen as they clear a protest near West Bank (Photo: AP)
Israeli security forces were sweeping villages Thursday near Hebron in the southern West Bank fearing that a missing Israeli may have been kidnapped by Palestinians, the army said.
The army is "performing extensive searches... following a police report of the suspected abduction of an Israeli citizen in the area," a military statement said.
Local media said the man was travelling with another Israeli when their vehicle suffered a flat tyre.
One of them went for help while the other remained in the vehicle and called police when his companion did not return after around 30 minutes, they reported.
Last June, the kidnapping and murder of three Israeli settlers in the Hebron area triggered a series of events that led to the Israeli assault on Gaza Strip.
The incident sparked a massive manhunt in which hundreds of Palestinians were arrested and at least five killed.
In July, 16-year-old Palestinian Mohammed Abu Khder was kidnapped from east Jerusalem and burned to death in a suspected Jewish revenge attack.
*The story was edited by Ahram Online.
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