West Bank: Palestinian kills three Israeli settlers, one seriously wounded

The attack occurred near the back entrance of the Har Adar colony. The identity of the attacker and the three victims still unknown. The man was "neutralized" by the security forces. The survivor was transported to a hospital in Jerusalem.


Jerusalem (AsiaNews) - This morning, an armed man of Palestinian origin shot three Israeli citizens in a group of people at the entrance to a Jewish colony in the Occupied Territories of the West Bank. It is reported by sources from the Israeli police, who add that the assailant was also hit during a clash with the agents and died shortly afterwards. His identity has not yet been revealed.

In a statement, the Israeli police report that "a terrorist" has "reached the back door" of Har Adar's colony, along with a group of Palestinian workers who were entering the settlement and opened fire "on armed guards ". In addition to the victims, the toll -  still provisional - speaks of at least one other seriously injured person. The victims all have gunshot wounds.

"The assailant -  concludes - has been neutralized by security forces."

The only person  who survived the attack was urgently transferred to Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem; the little information that has so far filtered through says the victim is in critical condition.

Sources from the Jerusalem Post report that the authorities did not want to reveal the identity of Israeli victims.

Starting in October 2015, a series of provocations by ultra-Orthodox Jews who went to pray on the Temple Mount after Yom Kippur and Sukkot sparked violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

A year into the knife intifada has resulted in the death of 238 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, a Jordanian, a Sudanese, and an Eritrean.

Israel accuses Palestinian leadership of fomenting these attacks. Conversely, the Palestinians point their finger at the leaders of the Jewish state, whose settlement policy has fueled decades of frustration and feelings of rivalry among the population. (DS)