1 dead, 5 injured after Palestinian man with Israeli citizens opens fire in Israel

An Israeli-Palestinian man went on a shooting spree in several towns in central Israel on Sunday, killing one person and wounding five, according to Israeli police. The attacker was killed by the police.

The number of locations where people were shot initially raised concerns that more allied attackers may have crossed over from the West Bank – triggering memories An attack led by Hamas in October 2023 – before police eventually discovered it was a lone gunman and his accomplices.

Rescuers Magen David Adom said they received the first reports of shooting at a gas station near the town of Kokhav Yair, which is on the Israeli side of the border with Israel. The West Bankaround 10:30 a.m. More reports of shooting were received shortly thereafter, in the towns of Tsur Natan, Tsur Yitzhak, and near the Israeli settlement of Sal’it, which is inside the West Bank.

Police have arrested a second person involved in Sunday’s attack. The suspect tried to stab the police with a glass bottle when he was arrested, but no one was injured, police said. Further investigation was ongoing.

Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the attacker stayed in his car during the shooting, which allowed him to reach multiple locations in a matter of minutes.

An Israeli man, 35, was killed in the town of Kokhav Yair, according to Israel’s rescue service, Magen David Adom. One of the victims fled the McDonald’s restaurant where his bloodstained clothes, which may have been cut by paramedics, were crumpled on the floor near the entrance.

Five people were injured in the shooting, two are in critical condition and three are moderately injured, said Magen David Adom. Rescuers initially reported that six people were injured following the chaos after the attack.

Residents of the area were ordered to stay at home and children were kept locked in school for at least three hours, according to the head of the district council.

“Since October 7, the situation we have been expecting is that terrorists are escaping from our cities from across the border, I don’t think anyone thought that we would find out that the attackers are Israeli citizens,” Oshrit Gani Gonen, head of the regional council in the area that includes the cities where the shooting happened, told Israeli media.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the swift action of the security forces. Israel’s public security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the police, also praised the work of the security forces. He posted a video of X standing next to what appeared to be a blurry image of the attacker’s body and declared “this is the end of all terrorists, this is what it should look like.”

“This is the result of terrorists, who must be eliminated – especially in the field, if not under the framework of the law on the death penalty for terrorists that we passed,” he said.

Ben-Gvir has been heavily criticized by other Israeli leaders for making controversial videos, such as his treatment of flotilla activists who were arrested after trying to cross the sea border to Gaza, to gain support among his hardline base, especially before Israel’s legislative elections in the fall.

Tensions are high in Israel and the West Bank, and have been high in the region ever since war in Gaza started in October 2023.

The militia is led by Hamas attacked the south of Israel on October 7, 2023, approximately 1,200 people died and 251 were taken hostage. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, including combatants and civilians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Also on Sunday, at least four Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestine Red Crescent.

The strike targeted the police in the southern town of Khan Younis. The four dead were taken to a hospital run by the Red Crescent, the charity said. 10 others were injured, the statement said. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strike but said in the past that it would deal with threats to its soldiers.