An American tourist has been killed in Israel, and authorities say they are investigating whether militants could be responsible for the attack. Police say the woman was stabbed to death while hiking with a friend in a forest near Jerusalem.
Police identified her as Christine Logan. They said her body was bound and had multiple stab wounds. Logan's disappearance on Saturday set off a massive search, says Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.
"Throughout the night, different police units, helicopter units, ground troops and undercover units have been looking around the area. And this morning, unfortunately, we discovered the missing woman. The woman that was murdered had an American passport."
The victim's friend, who is an Israeli tour guide, was also stabbed and wounded, but she escaped. She told police that they were attacked by two men speaking Arabic, one of whom had a long kitchen knife.
Rosenfeld says that suggests it could have been a politically-motivated attack by militants.
"We're taking her testimony very seriously. Every word that she said is being examined and looked into. We're looking for suspects. The investigation is continuing. And all directions are being looked into, as well as nationalistic, as well other possibilities, as well."
Israeli troops raided a Palestinian hospital near the West Bank town of Bethlehem in search of the assailants, believing they may have been injured in a struggle with the hikers.
NEW: Follow our Middle East reports on Twitter
and discuss them on our Facebook page. |