IDF says Palestinian gunmen behind deadly al-Funduq terror attack killed near Jenin

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

Israeli forces seen during a military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, January 22, 2025. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)
Israeli forces seen during a military operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, January 22, 2025. (Nasser Ishtayeh/Flash90)

Two Palestinian gunmen killed by troops near the West Bank city of Jenin last night were among the perpetrators of a deadly terror shooting attack in the village of al-Funduq earlier this month.

Hamas took responsibility for the January 6 attack, and confirms that Qutaiba al-Shalabi and Mohammed Nazal, who were killed last night, carried out the shooting that killed three Israelis.

The IDF says that troops of the Duvdevan commando unit, Shin Bet agents, and other soldiers surrounded a building in Wadi Burqin and carried out a tactic known as “pressure cooker,” which involves escalating the volume of fire against a building to flush suspects out.

After an exchange of fire that lasted some four hours, the two gunmen were killed. One IDF soldier was moderately hurt, the military says.

While Hamas claimed the two gunmen as members, the IDF says they are members of a different terror group, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

The IDF adds that several suspects who assisted in carrying out the deadly terror shooting were also detained amid an ongoing raid in the Jenin area.

At least three gunmen carried out the January 6 shooting in al-Funduq, killing off-duty police officer Master Sgt. Elad Yaakov Winkelstein and civilians Rachel Cohen and Aliza Raiz.

Master Sgt. Elad Yaakov Winkelstein (left), 35, Rachel Cohen (center), 73 and Aliza Raiz (right), 70, were killed in a terror shooting attack in the West Bank village of al-Funduq on January 6, 2025. (Courtesy)

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