AP file photo
At least one person was killed and three others were injured in an attack at a junction in the West Bank on Tuesday, Israeli emergency services said. According to the Israel Defence Forces, the victims were targeted in a combined vehicle-ramming and stabbing attack at the Gush Etzion Junction.Israeli volunteer rescue group ZAKA, which often serves as a first responder, said “three terrorists” suspected of carrying out the attack were “neutralized on site,” as cited by CNN.
A man in his 30s was stabbed to death, while two others, another man in his 30s and a 15-year-old boy, were moderately injured in the attack. The victim who died succumbed at the scene to a “severe stab wound,” according to Elad Pas, a paramedic with Israel’s emergency response service Magen David Adom (MDA).One of the victims of the attack at the Junction was apparently struck by Israeli troops’ gunfire by mistake. Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem said the 55-year-old woman is in serious condition after suffering gunshot wounds to her lower body.According to initial reports, the two assailants first attempted to ram their vehicle into pedestrians at the junction, after which one of them got out and began stabbing people, as cited by the Times of Israel. Both attackers were shot dead by the IDF at the scene.The Israeli military said several explosives were found inside the vehicle used by the attackers in the ramming and stabbing incident at the Gush Etzion Junction in the West Bank. Border Police sappers are working to disarm the devices, according to the IDF.The IDF added that numerous troops have been deployed to block roads, surround nearby Palestinian villages, and conduct extensive searches in the area.Settler violence has escalated in the West Bank, with the latest incident on Monday seeing Israeli settlers storm the Palestinian village of al-Jab’a, setting homes and cars on fire. The rampage prompted a rare condemnation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials.Israel’s military deployed soldiers and police to the village after receiving reports of fires and vandalism, as cited by AP. Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council on Monday approved a US-drafted resolution backing President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza, giving the proposal a binding international mandate after two years of conflict. The resolution passed with 13 votes in favor and no vetoes, while Russia and China abstained.While Israel has accepted the resolution, Hamas has rejected it, saying it fails to address Palestinian rights and seeks to impose an external authority on the territory.
