On 20 June 2023, two Hamas members shot at Israeli civilians near Eli, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, killing four and wounding four others.[1]

Background

On 19 June 2023, Israeli forces entered the Jenin refugee camp in order to arrest two suspects. Clashes broke out, leaving three Palestinian militants, one teenage girl and two uncategorized Palestinians killed. Eight Israeli soldiers were injured by a roadside bomb placed by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. They were all evacuated by military helicopter.

Shooting

On 20 June 2023, two Hamas-affiliated Palestinian militants from Urif entered a gas station near Eli. According an initial Israel Defense Forces (IDF) assessment, they shot several Israeli civilians before moving onto an adjacent Hummus Eliyahu restaurant, where they continued to shoot Israeli civilians. Four Israeli civilians were fatally shot and four others were wounded. One of the militants was fatally shot by an armed Israeli civilian.

The other militant stole a car and drove to a location near Tubas and abandoned it. The IDF later recovered the car. The IDF subsequently found the militant in a taxi near Tubas and fatally shot him.[2][3]

Reactions

Israeli

Politicians from across the Israeli political spectrum, including Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid and the National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz condemned the shooting as a murderous terrorist attack and offered condolences to the victims.

Ben-Gvir additionally called for stricter measures against West Bank Palestinians, especially militants, to prevent future militant attacks against Israeli settlers.

Several Israeli settlers from the northern portion of the Samaria region of the West Bank demonstrated against what they viewed as an inadequate response by the Israeli government and security forces.[2]

Palestinian

The Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist militant organisation Hamas identified the two gunmen as their members, and praised the shooting as a proper response to the recent Jenin incursion. However, it did not claim responsibility for the mass shooting.[1]

Aftermath

In response to the shooting, on 21 June 2023, hundreds of Israeli settlers set fire to 60 vehicles and 30 houses in Turmus Ayya, a Palestinian town in the West Bank. A 27-year old man named Omar Qattin was killed by gunfire, and 12 Palestinians were wounded in the violence.[4][1][5]

Far-right activists from the settlement of Yitzhar told the public broadcaster Kan that they had cut off electricity to the village of Urif as retaliation for the attack in Eli.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Debre, Isabel (20 June 2023). "Palestinians fatally shoot 4 Israelis before being killed, spurring revenge attacks in West Bank". Associated Press. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  2. 1 2 Jeremy Bob, Yonah (20 June 2023). "Four dead in West Bank shooting attack, Hamas claims responsibility". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  3. ↑ Fabian, Emanuel. "Four Israelis killed, four injured in terror shooting at West Bank gas station". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  4. ↑ "Palestinian killed as Israeli settlers attack West Bank village". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-06-22.
  5. ↑ Halabi, Einav; Kimon, Elisha Ben (2023-06-21). "Hundreds of rampaging settlers burn homes, cars in Turmus Ayya". Ynetnews. Retrieved 2023-06-22.
  6. ↑ "Far-right activists from Yitzhar say they cut power to nearby Palestinian town". www.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2023-06-22.
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