Palestinian attacker kills two in Northern Israel rampage

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A Palestinian killed two people in a stabbing and car-ramming attack in northern Israel on Friday, prompting the military to launch a crackdown on the assailant’s village in the occupied West Bank.

The attack came a day after an Israeli military reservist, dressed in civilian clothes, rammed his vehicle into a Palestinian man in the West Bank, where violence has surged since the war in Gaza began.

The Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, also triggered several attacks by Palestinians inside Israel that have left dozens dead.

“Preliminary investigation indicates this was a rolling terror attack that began in the city of Beit Shean, where a pedestrian was run over,” Israeli police said in a statement on Friday, adding that the victim was a 68-year-old man.

“Later, a young woman was stabbed near Road 71, and the suspect was ultimately engaged with gunfire near Maonot Junction in Afula following intervention by a civilian bystander,” the statement said, adding that the attacker was taken to the hospital.

Both victims succumbed to their injuries, Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency service said.

MDA also reported that a 16-year-old was slightly injured when “hit by a vehicle”.

The Israeli military said the attacker had “infiltrated into Israeli territory several days ago”.

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### Repeated stabbing

In a later statement on Friday, Israeli police said the attacker, a 34-year-old man, was a resident of Qabatiya and had taken his employer’s vehicle to carry out the attack.

After ramming the vehicle into two individuals in Beit She’an, the attacker continued and struck a stationary vehicle.

“He then exited his car carrying a knife … and managed to reach an 18-year-old woman and stabbed her repeatedly,” the force said, adding that the attacker’s employer had been detained.

Following the attack, Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to launch an operation in Qabatiya after it emerged that the attacker came from the area.

Katz instructed the army “to act forcefully and immediately against the village of Qabatiya, from which the murderous terrorist emerged, to locate and thwart every terrorist and strike the village’s terror infrastructure,” his office said.

“Anyone who aids terrorism or sponsors and backs it will pay the full price,” it added.

Later on Friday, the military said its soldiers had launched an operation in Qabatiya, which has seen frequent violence.

The soldiers aimed to “thwart terrorism, and are currently conducting a precise operational search at the residence of the terrorist” who carried out the attack, the military said on X.

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### ‘Horrific killing.’

President Isaac Herzog condemned the attack.

“I wish to express my deep shock at the horrific killing spree and the combined terrorist attack in northern Israel carried out by a despicable terrorist,” he said.

“Israel is committed to reinforcing and strengthening this challenging border and, of course, to bolstering the security response in the area for the full safety of the residents,” Herzog added.

Palestinian militant group Hamas said Friday’s attack came “as an expression of the accumulated popular anger and as a result of the Zionist occupation’s daily crimes” against the Palestinian people.

Friday’s attack took place just days after Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager in the Qabatiya area.

The military has launched an investigation after footage emerged showing the teenager did not pose a threat or throw anything at soldiers who shot him.

The military had initially claimed a “terrorist had hurled a block toward the soldiers.

The attack on Friday also came a day after an Israeli military reservist, dressed in civilian clothes, rammed his vehicle into a Palestinian man in the West Bank.

In videos circulating on social media purporting to show the incident, the victim is seen praying by the roadside when the soldier rams him with his vehicle.

Since the start of the war in Gaza following Hamas’ attack on Israel, at least 38 people, including two foreigners, have been killed inside Israel in attacks by Palestinians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

During the same period, violence has also surged in the West Bank, a territory occupied by Israel since 1967.

Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, including many militants and dozens of civilians, according to an AFP tally based on figures from the Palestinian health ministry.

According to official Israeli figures, at least 44 Israelis, both soldiers and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations in the West Bank during the same period.

AFP

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