TEL AVIV – The Hamas terrorist organization is openly celebrating today’s murderous shooting attack in a crowded Tel Aviv civilian market.
Hamas’s Gaza leader Ismail Haniyeh praised one of the shooters as a “hero,” and tweeted that he prays for “mercy and light” for his soul. His tweet went out immediately after the attack, when initial reports said there was one assailant. It would emerge minutes later that there was a second shooter.
Also today, Hamas-affiliated media reported that Palestinians in Gaza and in the West Bank city of Hebron set off fireworks in celebration of the attack.
It was not immediately confirmed whether the fireworks were indeed in response to the attack or to celebrate Ramadan, which often ends each night with firecrackers and fireworks.
Nickolay E. Mladenov, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, expressed “shock” that Hamas would praise the attack.
The two attackers today are reportedly relatives – either brothers or cousins, depending on the report – who hail from Yatta, a village south of Hebron. The Israel Defense Forces is reportedly deploying in Hebron in the wake of the attack.
At four people were killed and sixteen were wounded, at least five seriously, in the terrorist shooting attack in Tel Aviv’s Sarona Market, an upscale food and shopping center in the heart of central Tel Aviv.
Sarona is located near one of the busiest intersections in Tel Aviv. It’s around the corner from an entrance to Israel’s Ayalon Highway and about three city blocks from the Israel Defense Forces main headquarters in Tel Aviv.
Aaron Klein is Breitbart’s Jerusalem bureau chief and senior investigative reporter. He is a New York Times bestselling author and hosts the popular weekend talk radio program, “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio.” Follow him on Twitter @AaronKleinShow. Follow him on Facebook.