Soldiers at Eilat Iron Dome battery shoot attacker

IDF soldiers guarding an Iron Dome battery in the southern Israeli city of Eilat shot and injured an Israeli man who ran at them.

Soldiers at the site said the man, a resident of the Galilee Arab town of Majd al-Krum, shouted, “Allahu Akbar! I came to carry out an attack!” as he rushed toward their position, according to Army Radio. IDF forces reportedly called for the man to stop and opened fire when he refused to do so.

The man was lightly injured.

During his interrogation after the incident, the man confirmed he planned on carrying out an attack, but it was not clear if he was armed.

In August, the Eilat-based Iron Dome battery intercepted a Grad rocket from Sinai bound for Israel’s southernmost city, in the first successful interception since the battery’s July deployment.

The last-minute deployment was spurred by developments in Egypt, where the military continued its offensive against terrorist activities in the porous Sinai area.