In what police classified as a terrorist attack, a Palestinian assailant opened fire toward Israeli security personnel at the entrance to the West Bank village of Har Adar, killing two security guards and one Border Police officer, while critically wounding another security guard. Police spokesman Mikey Rosenfeld told TV7 that the terrorist, a 37-year-old Palestinian, approached Har Adar as part of a group of Palestinians who are permitted to work in the Israeli village, and aroused suspicion of Israeli security forces posted at the entrance-checkpoint to the village. Rosenfeld further noted that when the Palestinian assailant was demanded to halt, the attacker drew a pistol and opened fire at the security force stations at the scene at very close range, bringing about the deadly outcome of the attack. Israel’s Police commissioner Roni Alsheikh, who visit the location of the deadly attack, gave a recollection of the incident, praising the border police force and security guards who thwarted with their lives the murderous mission of the Palestinian terrorist. He said, “He opens fire towards those surrounding him, those whom are in direct contact with him, and in a preliminary investigation and search, the prompt response of a female fighter and a male fighter, one guard in the jeep and one next to the gyp, that open fire and kill him (the terrorist), conclude this incident. If not, he could have entered the village to continue on his way or whatever he planned to do in his murderous mission,” Alsheikh said.
The terror attack was defined by security experts as unusual, as the attacker was a 37-year-old man who was issued an Israeli work permit – a process that entails thorough security vetting – unlike most of the Palestinians involved in terror attacks against Israelis in recent years.
Meanwhile, during his weekly cabinet meeting that was held this morning in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanded of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to condemn the act of terror, while pointing to several Israeli measures that will immediately happen in response to the attack. Netanyahu said, “We are still investigating the incident, and also its consequences. But a few things we can say now with certainty. One: the terrorist’s home will be destroyed. Two: The IDF has already blockaded the (Palestinian) village (from where the attacker originated). Three: We are revoking immediately all the work permits of the extended family of the terrorist. The murderous terror attack comes as a result of ongoing incitement by the Palestinian Authority and also other sources. I expect from Abu Mazen (Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas) to condemn this terror attack and won’t try to justify it,” the Israeli leader said.
The Islamist Hamas organization, which controls the Gaza Strip and calls for Israel’s destruction, praised the attack in Har Adar, saying it was “a normal reaction” to what the Palestinian group defined as “the crimes of the occupation.” Spokesperson of the organization, Hazem Qassem said, “Hamas praises the operation in Jerusalem today and considers it as a normal reaction to the crimes of the occupation and to the continuous occupation of our Palestinian land and sacred sites. We can assure that Jerusalem is the main reason for our conflict with the occupation and our people will continue to resist until they achieve their freedom,” he declared.