6 injured, 2 critically, in terrorist stabbing spree in Hadera
Suspect, an Israeli citizen, rides moped between different sites of his attack, is eventually cornered by armed residents and subdued
Six people were stabbed and injured, two of them critically, in a terror attack on Wednesday in Hadera that spanned four different locations in the central city.
Police said the suspect, who appeared to have acted alone, used a moped to get from one location to the next, attacking people at each place.
The terrorist was then cornered by armed residents until police officers arrived and helped subdue him.
The suspect was later identified by Hebrew-language media as an Arab Israeli resident of Umm al-Fahm. The man was reportedly known to police for past criminal activities.
Magen David Adom chief Eli Bin said two of the victims had initially been listed as seriously injured but their conditions deteriorated and were later declared to be critical. Three other victims were in serious condition and the fourth was moderately wounded.
Dr. Jalal Ashkar, director of the Emergency Medicine Department at Hillel Yaffe Medical Center, told Channel 12 that four of the victims had undergone surgery.
‘Get on the floor!’
Video posted to social media appeared to show the moment a number of armed members of the public surrounded the suspect on what appeared to be a main shopping street, their weapons drawn.
The alleged attacker could be seen in the video wearing a motorbike helmet and a jacket.
The residents shouted in Hebrew and English to the man to “get onto the floor,” but he either ignored them or did not understand.
At least two warning shots were fired in the air before one man fired at the suspect as he reached into his coat. It wasn’t immediately clear if he was hit.
Armed police officers then arrived at the scene and pushed the suspect to the ground while shouting at the others not to shoot.
אירוע הדקירות בחדרה: עלה לחמישה מספר הפצועים, שניים מהם במצב קשה. המשטרה: ההערכה שמדובר בפיגוע עדיין נבדקת >>> https://t.co/yXb0HRvNFQ
(שימוש לפי סעיף 27א) pic.twitter.com/HcV1gkWUc5
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) October 9, 2024
Speaking at the scene, new police chief Daniel Levy raised some eyebrows by implying that his force is currently unable to adequately prevent terror attacks.
“I want to stress that the Israel Police, these days, as you understand, is stretched to the limit,” he said. “My heart is with the injured, but it seems like this is what we’ll have to face in this period and we need to be strong.”
Hadera Mayor Nir Ben Haim praised the residents for their bravery in confronting the terrorist.
“This is a difficult day for Hadera, but the heroism of our residents who assisted in the capture of the terrorist proves the importance of vigilance,” he said, according to the Walla news site. “The results of the attack could have been much more severe. I want to thank each and every one of you for your composure and resourcefulness.”
The attack came two days after the anniversary of Hamas’s October 7 mass onslaught against southern Israel, the worst terror attack in Israel’s history, and amid a wave of deadly attacks.
On Sunday, Sgt. Shira Suslik, 19, a Border Police officer, was killed by a gunman at the bus station in Beersheba. Ten others were wounded in the attack.
Last week seven people were killed and at least eight others wounded in a shooting and stabbing attack in Jaffa, one of the deadliest terror attacks in Israel in recent years.
In 2022, Border Police officers Yazan Falah and Shirel Aboukrat, both 19, were shot dead in a terror attack in Hadera. The two perpetrators, supporters of the Islamic State terror group, were from Umm al-Fahm.