A gunman in a car opened fire at three locations in Israel close to the border with the occupied West Bank on Sunday, killing one man and wounding several other people, Israeli authorities reported. The police stated that they killed the suspected gunman after a brief pursuit and recovered the firearm and vehicle used in the shootings, which occurred in and around Kochav Yair, inside Israel near the West Bank city of Qalqilya.
A second suspect was later arrested after he made statements suggesting involvement in the attack, the police said, without providing details of his alleged role. He attempted to assault officers with a glass bottle during his arrest.
Official Reactions
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the police officers, saying, "This morning, a heinous terrorist went out, reached Kochav Yair, and unfortunately managed, before being eliminated, to murder an Israeli citizen and injure others." President Isaac Herzog expressed being "shocked by the horrific terror attack" and offered sympathy for the family of the slain victim along with prayers for a swift recovery for the wounded.
Victim and Suspect Details
Police identified the man killed by the gunman as a 35-year-old civilian. Israel's ambulance service reported that five other people were wounded, two of them seriously, in the drive-by shootings at three locations. The gunman was described by police as being in his twenties and a resident of Tayibe, a nearby Israeli city predominantly populated by Arab citizens of Israel.
No Claim of Responsibility
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. The Palestinian militant group Hamas praised the shootings but did not claim responsibility. Following the incident, Israeli soldiers were deployed to one of the sites in central Israel and to a nearby Israeli settlement in the West Bank, according to a military statement.
Hardline Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for a "profound change" among Israeli Arabs, who make up around 20% of Israel's population. He stated that a "dangerous and extremist breeding ground for terrorism is growing that seeks to destroy the State of Israel."
