A Palestinian man kills 2 in car-ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel and injures 2 others

Two Killed in Palestinian Car-Ramming and Stabbing Attack in Northern Israel

A Palestinian attacker killed two Israelis in a violent ramming and stabbing assault in northern Israel on Friday, prompting an immediate military response in the West Bank. The incident marks another episode in the escalating violence that has plagued the region since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war last year.

The attack began in the northern city of Beit Shean when the assailant rammed his vehicle into pedestrians, killing a 68-year-old man identified as Shimshon Mordechai and injuring a teenage boy. The attacker then fled the scene, driving onto a nearby highway where he fatally stabbed a young woman named Aviv Maor near the entrance to Afula. Another person was also injured during the stabbing assault.

Israeli security forces responded quickly, shooting and wounding the attacker in Afula. He was subsequently hospitalized, though authorities did not immediately release details about his condition.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog expressed shock at what he described as a “horrific killing spree” and emphasized the government’s commitment to strengthening security in the border region. “We are committed to reinforcing and strengthening this challenging border and, of course, to bolstering the security response in the area for the full safety of the residents,” Herzog stated.

Within hours of the attack, the Israeli military launched an operation in Qabatiya, the Palestinian town in the northern West Bank where Defense Minister Israel Katz said the attacker originated. Israeli forces blocked roads around the town and positioned themselves strategically, including around the assailant’s home, which they prepared to demolish.

Qabatiya’s mayor, Ahmad Zakarneh, reported that residents had rushed to stock up on supplies from bakeries and supermarkets after receiving notification of the impending military operation. The Israeli military confirmed they were conducting a “precise operational search” at the attacker’s residence with intelligence forces.

“Anyone who aids or sponsors terrorism will pay the full price,” Katz declared, ordering troops to “act forcefully and immediately” against what he termed “terrorist infrastructure” in the town.

This rapid military response aligns with Israel’s established practice of launching raids in the West Bank towns where attackers originate and demolishing homes belonging to assailants’ families. While Israeli officials maintain these actions help prevent future attacks and disrupt militant networks, human rights organizations have criticized the practice as collective punishment.

The northern West Bank area around Qabatiya and nearby Jenin has been subject to increased Israeli military activity in recent weeks. On December 20, Israeli forces killed a person in Qabatiya who they claimed “hurled a block toward the soldiers,” though the incident came under review after Palestinian media released security footage that appeared to contradict this account.

Violence has surged in the region since the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. The subsequent war in Gaza has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives and triggered increased militant attacks in Israel and settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

In an unrelated diplomatic development, Israel on Friday became the first country to officially recognize Somaliland, the breakaway region of Somalia in East Africa. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that he, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, and Somaliland’s President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi had signed a joint declaration “in the spirit of the Abraham Accords.”

The timing and motivation behind Israel’s recognition of Somaliland remain unclear. Earlier this year, reports emerged that Israel had approached Somaliland about potentially resettling Palestinians from Gaza, though the U.S. has since abandoned that plan. Egypt, a key mediator in the Israel-Hamas conflict, quickly rejected Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, emphasizing its support for Somalia’s territorial integrity.

The current U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement in the Israel-Hamas war explicitly prohibits the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza.