2 car bombs detonate in coordinated West Bank attacks; terrorists killed by troops

Two car bombs exploded in the Gush Etzion area of the West Bank late Friday night, in what security officials believed was a coordinated attack. Two Palestinian terrorists involved in the attacks were killed by troops at the scene.

In the first incident, a car exploded at a gas station near the Gush Etzion junction. Troops dispatched to the scene shot dead a terrorist who had arrived in the vehicle and who attempted to attack them, the military said.

In the second incident, which occurred about 20 minutes later, a terrorist breached into the nearby Karmei Tzur settlement, before being shot dead. The terrorist’s car exploded inside the community.

At the gas station, a soldier was moderately wounded and a reservist officer who is the head of a local security team was lightly hurt, likely as a result of friendly fire while forces shot the alleged terrorist dead, the military and medics said. The two were taken to a hospital.

The commander of the IDF’s Etzion Regional Brigade, Col. Gal Rich, was also lightly hurt, but did not require hospitalization, the military said. Rich was hit in the arm but continued to operate at the scene to investigate the attack.

Footage posted to social media showed the moment the suspect at the gas station was shot.

תיעוד | המחבל שביצע את הפיגוע בצומת הגוש מנסה לברוח ולתקוף לוחם – ונורה@ItayBlumental pic.twitter.com/iRfWljUOyN

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) August 30, 2024

In the second incident, a Palestinian rammed a car through the entrance to the nearby settlement of Karmei Tzur. IDF troops stationed in the area opened fire at the attacker, but the vehicle continued into the community.

One of the members of the local security team, in his own car, chased after the terrorist and crashed into the attacker’s car, before getting out and shooting him dead. The guard himself was lightly hurt in the crash and taken to hospital.

Moments later, the terrorist’s car exploded.

Security forces at the scene of a car bomb explosion at the Gush Etzion Junction in the West Bank, on August 31, 2024 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The IDF and Shin Bet believe that the two Palestinian terrorists were coordinated. They were named by the Palestinian Authority as Muhammad Marqa and Zahdi Afifa, from Hebron.

The pair set out together from the Hebron area and headed toward the Etzion settlement bloc to carry out the attack at two locations, according to an initial probe.

Their affiliations were not immediately known.

The IDF searched Karmei Tzur overnight, amid fears of additional attackers, but in the morning gave residents the all-clear. Forces detained six Palestinians suspected to have been involved in the attacks.

The army encircled Hebron and towns in the area as it searched for additional suspects and investigated the attack.

Surveillance camera footage purportedly shows the moment a car exploded at a gas station in the Gush Etzion area of the West Bank this evening pic.twitter.com/fNPctrzsHN

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) August 30, 2024

Earlier this week, the military launched counterterrorism operations in several West Bank cities, killing multiple gunmen. The IDF’s West Bank operations were conducted in the wake of an attempted suicide bombing in Tel Aviv last week. The bomber, whose explosive detonated prematurely, was named by the Hamas terror group as Jaafar Mona, from the West Bank city of Nablus.

Hamas official Khaled Mashaal called in a speech in Istanbul Wednesday for the resumption of suicide attacks, according to reports in Arabic media.

IDF troops examine the wreckage of a car bomb in the West Bank settlement of Karmei Tzur, early August 31, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)

Since October 7, troops have arrested some 4,850 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,960 affiliated with Hamas.

According to the Palestinian Authority health ministry, more than 650 West Bank Palestinians have been killed in that time. The IDF says the vast majority of them were gunmen killed in exchanges of fire, rioters who clashed with troops or terrorists carrying out attacks.

During the same period, 27 people, including Israeli security personnel, have been killed in 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.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.