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BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Israeli police reportedly detained a 16-year-old Palestinian Thursday evening in occupied East Jerusalem for allegedly planning to carry out a stabbing attack against police forces, according to Israeli police.

Israeli police spokesperson Luba al-Samri stated that Israeli police forces and border guards apprehended a young Palestinian after he “raised suspicions” while moving through a public bus crossing from the Shufat neighborhood into Beit Hanina in East Jerusalem.

According to Israeli police, after searching the minor and finding a knife, the 16-year-old was taken to a police station where he reportedly confessed his intentions of carrying out a stabbing attack on Israeli police forces.

The young suspect is from the Shufat neighborhood in East Jerusalem. However, no other details have been released.

Police have been deployed throughout East Jerusalem following the attack, al-Samri said in the statement.

More than 200 Palestinians and almost 30 Israelis have been killed since the beginning of a wave of violence in October, characterized by a number of small-scale Palestinian attacks and alleged attacks against Israeli military targets.

However, the frequency of stabbing attacks have seen a sharp decrease in the occupied West Bank in recent months, with the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research finding that the “rising perception of their inefficacy,” among Palestinians was a major reason for the dwindling of support.