One person was killed and five were wounded in a suspected terrorist attack in central Israel, near the occupied West Bank, the Israeli emergency medical service reported today, quoted by Reuters, BTA reported.
Israeli police said that the suspected attacker was "neutralized", without providing further information about his identity or other circumstances. Search operations are continuing in the area to identify possible accomplices, the Associated Press notes. Authorities urged residents to stay in their homes.
According to police data, the shootings took place in three different areas in the central part of the country, near the Palestinian town of Qalqilya in the West Bank.
The Palestinian movement "Hamas" welcomed the attack but did not claim responsibility for it.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had held a meeting with security services to assess the situation and was monitoring the case.
Tensions in the West Bank have remained high since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023. Since then, there has been an increase in Israeli military operations, attacks on Israelis and incidents of violence between Jewish settlers and Palestinians.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported that Israeli soldiers opened fire on a car in the West Bank over the weekend. A 7-month-old baby was killed in the shooting and his parents were injured.
According to the Israeli army, the car was heading towards the soldiers at high speed.