2 Israeli Arab teen girls stab bus station guard

Two Arab Israeli teenage girls stabbed and lightly wounded a guard at a bus station in central Israeli city Ramle on Thursday before being arrested, police said.

The attack was the latest in a four-month wave of Palestinian violence targeting Israeli civilians and security personnel in the West Bank and Israel.

According to police, a security guard at the entrance to the central bus station of the city, southeast of Tel Aviv, asked the two 13-year-olds -- one of them carrying a backpack -- to identify themselves.

The two then pulled knives and stabbed the guard in an arm and his legs, lightly wounding him before they were apprehended. The guard was taken to hospital, medics said.

A number of Arab Israelis have carried out attacks as part of the wave of Palestinian violence since October, which has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count.

At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations.

Arab Israelis hold Israeli citizenship, though they largely see themselves as Palestinians.

Source: AFP