From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, January 22, 2020
IDF says Palestinians who crossed into Israel yesterday planned a terror attack
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleThe Israel Defense Forces believes the three Palestinian teenagers who were shot dead after they crossed the Gaza border fence into Israel last night were planning to carry out a terror attack, IDF Spokesperson Hidai Zilberman says.
The military does not yet know if the three — all of them 17 and 18 years old and from refugee camps near Deir al-Balah in central Gaza — were sent by a Palestinian terror group, but is investigating, Zilberman tells reporters.
Asked if the military anticipated Palestinian terror groups’ rocket fire in response to the incident, he says the IDF is not currently on high alert but is, as always, ready to defend Israel’s airspace.
The army spokesman says the military’s assessment that the three teenagers, who were armed with improvised explosive devices, a knife and a screwdriver, planned to carry out a terror attack was based on the location where they crossed — a portion of the fence near a wooded area that has been used for terrorist infiltrations in the past — and how they acted once inside Israeli territory.
“There are those who cross, then stop; those who cross, then run; and those who cross, then continue like they have a mission. They did the last two things,” Zilberman says.
“This wasn’t a spontaneous crossing,” he adds.
According to Zilberman, the trio were under IDF surveillance from 8:35 p.m., before they crossed into Israeli territory, as they moved toward the security fence. They entered Israel some two kilometers from the community of Kibbutz Kissufim and were quickly surrounded by troops from the Kfir Brigade’s Haruv Battalion and a tank battalion.
“Once they were surrounded, the terrorists realized they’d been spotted and threw two explosives at the troops,” Zilberman says.
The soldiers opened fire, killing the three assailants.
Earlier today, IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi met with the soldiers involved in the clash and praised them for their rapid response, Zilberman says.
— Judah Ari Gross
The Times of Israel Community.