Palestinian group claims it captured Israeli soldier

JERUSALEM — A previously unknown Palestinian group claims it kidnapped an Israeli soldier.

A group calling itself the Al Quds Army released a statement Thursday announcing the abduction.

“A group of our resistance fighters captured a Zionist soldier near Ben-Gurion Airport and withdrew along with the soldier without incident,” said the statement sent to the Palestinian news agency Ma’an. “We will provide details about the captured soldier later.”

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The Israel Defense Forces told the Israeli media it is investigating the reports. The IDF spokesman said in a statement Thursday evening that a soldier had filed a report earlier in the day claiming she saw two people forcing a soldier into a car near an Air Force base near the international airport, according to reports.

Army and police checkpoints were set up Thursday afternoon on roads near major Israeli cities as well as in the West Bank, according to reports.

Ma’an reported that a soldier made a phone call to an unnamed person claiming to have been kidnapped.

A Palestinian security official told the Israeli news outlet Ynet that the Al-Quds Army is believed to have links to Hezbollah.