No injuries in drive-by West Bank shooting on Israeli car

Assailants opened fire on an Israeli vehicle in the West Bank on Friday afternoon, causing no injuries.

Three shots were fired in the drive-by shooting, according to the IDF. Passengers in the Israeli vehicle shot back, the army said.

The gunmen fled the scene, and the IDF was searching the area.

The attack took place near the settlement of Kochav Hashachar, near the site where 25-year-old Malachy Rosenfeld was fatally shot last month, on his way home from a basketball game. Three other Israelis were hurt in the June 29 attack.

Friday’s shooting came on the heels of a deadly arson attack in the West Bank village of Duma, which lies several miles north of Kochav Hashachar. Two homes in the Palestinian village south of Nablus were set alight, and the Hebrew words “Revenge” and “Long live the king messiah” were spray-painted on their walls, alongside a Star of David, overnight Thursday-Friday, apparently by Jewish extremists.

The child killed in the attack, Ali Saad Dawabsha, was 18 months old. His parents, as well as his 4-year-old brother, were injured and evacuated to a hospital in central Israel. The mother and brother were said to be in critical condition.

Seeking to prevent riots in the West Bank, the Israel Defense Forces bolstered its troops on Friday. An additional four battalions were called in to assist in the search for the arsonists, who remain at large, according to the IDF.

Hamas had called a “Day of Rage” Friday in the West Bank, following the deaths of three Palestinians in recent weeks by Israeli troops. The fatal arson attack was expected to further stoke tensions, and the army was gearing up for altercations with Palestinians.

The army was on high alert ahead of the slain baby’s funeral, which was set for Friday afternoon in the West Bank.