Israeli and Palestinian officials said that a Palestinian attacker was shot dead after carrying out an attack on two Israelis on Tuesday in the occupied West Bank.
Hours before Israel’s new parliament is sworn in, there has been a recent uptick in violence, and MPs on the far-right who are expected to serve in the cabinet have vowed to crack down on Palestinian violence.
“Following the initial report regarding a stabbing attack near the Ariel Industrial Zone, a terrorist arrived at the entrance gate of the zone and stabbed civilians in the area,” a statement from the army said.
“Other civilians were stabbed at a nearby gas station. The terrorist fled the scene and was neutralised afterwards,” the statement said.
Without offering any other information, the Palestinian health ministry made a statement about a man who was killed there by Israeli soldiers.
According to Israeli media, the perpetrator escaped the scene in a car, driving against traffic and ramming into a vehicle, before escaping by foot.
According to MDA, three additional stab victims—one in critical condition and two others in serious condition—were being transported from the industrial area to a hospital in Petah Tikvah.
According to MDA, a second man who was stabbed on the highway was transferred to the same hospital and is in a critical condition.
While security forces have been able to remove sizable extremist infrastructures, outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid extended his sympathies to the families of the deceased and stated that “we have to fight this battle every day again.”
Following the election on November 1, former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his partners won 64 seats out of the 120 seats in the parliament, denying Lapid and his supporters the majority needed to form a government.
The leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, Betzalel Smotrich, said Tuesday’s attack was a “sad reminder to the most essential matter on our table.” Religious Zionism is expected to play a significant role in the coalition that Netanyahu is forging.
“We must bring back security to all Israelis,” he wrote on Twitter.
Since March, there has been an increase in violence in the West Bank as a result of Israel’s nearly daily incursions in response to a slew of deadly attacks on Israelis.
A Palestinian teen was killed by Israeli gunfire on Monday near Ramallah when her car drove up towards the soldiers.
Since the 1967’s six-day war, Israel has held the West Bank under occupation.
