Four soldiers hurt, two seriously, in car-ramming terror attack in central Israel
East Jerusalem Palestinian rams car into bus stop outside military base, is shot dead by police; in Hebron, officers arrest wife of jailed Hamas operative with knife
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Four Israel Defense Forces soldiers were wounded, two of them seriously, in a car-ramming terror attack at a junction in central Israel on Sunday afternoon, police and medics said.
According to police, the terrorist, identified as a Palestinian man from East Jerusalem, rammed his car into people waiting at a bus station at the Nir Tzvi junction.
The junction, outside the town of the same name, is adjacent to the IDF’s Tzrifin base.
The four victims were taken to the nearby Asaf Harofeh Hospital, which said it was treating a soldier and officer in serious condition, another soldier who was moderately hurt, and a cadet who was lightly hurt.
Police described the incident as a terror attack.
Commander Avi Bitton, the Central District police chief, said at the scene that the terrorist “rammed, made a U-turn, and rammed again.”
Three of the victims were directly struck by the car, according to medics.
The suspected terrorist was shot dead at the scene by Border Police officers who were stationed in the area. Footage circulating on social media showed the moment they opened fire at the assailant.
Footage shows security forces opening fire at the driver who rammed into people at a bus station at the Nir Tzvi junction. pic.twitter.com/5hZe5NHMES
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) July 14, 2024
Separately on Sunday, a Palestinian woman armed with a knife was detained by Border Police officers at the entrance to the Tomb of the Patriarchs, known as the Ibrahimi Mosque to Muslims, in the West Bank city of Hebron, law enforcement officials said.
According to police, the 37-year-old woman, who is married to a Hamas operative currently jailed by Israel, was stopped by troops at the entrance to the holy site with her two children.
“During the inspection, the suspect was asked by one of the troops to open her bag for inspection, and in response, she refused to cooperate and tried to interfere with the proper course of the inspection,” a police spokesperson said.
Police said the woman was found to be hiding a knife under her shirt and was promptly arrested along with one of her sons. The second son was briefly detained as well.
“During her arrest, she stated to the forces that she is married to a Hamas operative who is serving a prison sentence in an Israeli prison and her goal was to carry out a stabbing attack against a specific member of the security forces who operates in the area of the Tomb of the Patriarchs,” police added.
Tensions in Israel and the West Bank have soared since October 7, when terrorists burst through the Gaza border into Israel in a Hamas-led attack, killing some 1,200 people and seizing 251 hostages.
Since then, 22 Israelis, including security personnel, have been killed in Palestinian terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank. Another five members of the security forces were killed in clashes with terror operatives in the West Bank.
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