Palestinian gunmen fire at police vehicle, store in Samaritan community near Nablus
No injuries caused in shooting attack in northern West Bank; IDF hunts for assailants
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Palestinian gunmen opened fire from a passing vehicle at a police cruiser and a nearby store in a small Samaritan community in the northern West Bank on Wednesday, the military said.
The shooting attack took place in the Mount Gerizim area, just south of Nablus, and close to the Jewish settlement of Har Bracha. The area is home to a tiny community of Samaritans, known as Shomronim in Hebrew.
The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that it had launched a manhunt for the suspects who carried out the attack and had fled.
Surveillance camera footage without sound showed a white Kia Picanto driving past the store and police vehicle, before people began to flee.
Other videos from the scene showed a shattered window in the store. The IDF said a vehicle in the area was also damaged.
No physical injuries were reported, Israeli medics said.
תיעוד הירי. אותרו פגיעות בחנות ובניידת משטרה pic.twitter.com/1gt9MJyjok
— Carmel Dangor כרמל דנגור (@carmeldangor) July 5, 2023
During the past year, Palestinian gunmen have repeatedly targeted military posts, troops operating along the West Bank security barrier, Israeli settlements and civilians on the roads.
The attack came hours after the IDF pulled back from Jenin following a two-day-long incursion targeting terror groups in the Palestinian refugee camp adjacent to the West Bank city.
Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have been high across the West Bank for the past year and a half, with the military carrying out near-nightly raids, amid a series of deadly Palestinian terror attacks.
Since the beginning of this year, Palestinian attacks in Israel and the West Bank have killed 24 people.
According to a tally by The Times of Israel, 147 West Bank Palestinians have been killed during that time — most of them during clashes with security forces or while carrying out attacks, but some were uninvolved civilians and others were killed under unclear circumstances.
