TEL AVIV – A Palestinian wielding a knife rammed a vehicle into an Israeli bus stop in the West Bank and was shot dead by Israeli forces responding to the attack, the army said.
Israeli civilians waiting at the bus stop were not injured in the attempted attack, according to initial reports.
The Israel Defense Forces released the following statement on the matter, which they sent by text message to Breitbart News and other agencies:
A short while ago a Palestinian rammed a vehicle into a bus stop at the entrance to Kokhav Ya’akov, south-east of Ramallah. No injuries have been reported. In response to the immediate threat, forces fired at the attacker, resulting in his death. A knife was found in the attackers possession.
The IDF said it was looking into the incident as a “suspected car attack.”
The Times of Israel has more:
According to the military, the driver swerved from his lane and crashed his truck into the metal bollards surrounding a bus stop near the Ma’ale Michmash settlement in the central West Bank.
…The driver was later identified by the Palestinian health ministry as Hussein Salem Abu Ghosh, 24, from Qalandiya.
According to the Ynet news site, Abu Ghosh is the cousin of a terrorist, also named Hussein Abu Ghosh from the Qalandiya refugee camp, who killed 23-year-old Shlomit Krigman and injured another woman in the Beit Horon settlement exactly one year ago.
A video of the aftermath of the attack can be seen below:
Following the attempted car-ramming, a second attack targeted Israeli troops near the village of Aboud, which is close to the scene of the attempted ramming attack.
The IDF stated:
Shots were fired from a passing vehicle at an IDF post adjacent to the village of Aboud. No injuries were sustained. In response, IDF forces fired towards the gunman, confirming a hit. Upon searching the vehicle, forces found a “Carlo” firearm. The assailant is receiving medical treatment at the scene.
The IDF provided Breitbart Jerusalem with an image of the “Carlo” firearm it said was uncovered in the assailant’s vehicle:
Earlier this month, a Palestinian carried out a deadly truck-ramming terrorist attack in Jerusalem, killing four and injuring 13, some seriously.
Today’s attempted attack targeting civilians at a bus stop represents what seems to be the continued stepping up of terrorist attacks in the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem following last month’s United Nations Security Council anti-Israel resolution calling the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem “occupied Palestinian territories.”
Israeli defense officials here have also noted a sharp and alarming increase in Palestinian rock-throwing attacks since the UN resolution.
Some of the holiest sites in Judaism are located in eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank, including the Western Wall and Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City; the Cave of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs in Hebron, which was home to the oldest continuous Jewish community in the world until the Jews of Hebron were massacred and expelled; the Tomb of Rachel in Bethlehem; and Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus – biblical Shechem.
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.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.