Palestinian Terrorist Who Killed Two in Tel Aviv Shot Dead After Massive Manhunt

The Palestinian terrorist who carried out a deadly shooting attack in Tel Aviv was shot and killed on Friday morning by security forces in the adjacent city of Jaffa where he was hiding next to a mosque.

It was the fourth terror attack in two weeks, bringing the death toll to 13.

Two people were killed when 28-year-old Raad Hazem from the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank began a shooting spree in downtown Tel Aviv on Thursday night.  Hazem, who was in Israel illegally, had no criminal record and no known affiliations with terror organizations.

Thursday night is the busiest night of the week for recreational activities in Israel, since the five day work week ends that day. Dizengoff Street, one of Tel Aviv’s main thoroughfares, is lined with bars and restaurants that are packed on a Thursday evening.

The gunman first opened fire outside Ilka, a bar with outside seating. The gunman then left the scene and continued shooting through a side street, narrowly missing another man who had left the bar after the attack began.

Ten people were rushed to Ichilov hospital with gunshot wounds. Tomer Morad and Eytam Magini, two friends aged 27 and 28 years old, died in the attack. Another four were in critical condition and four more were described as being in good to moderate condition.

One of the wounded who was hospitalized in “good to moderate condition” was Ra’anan Shimon, 32, who was drinking a beer at the bar when he was shot in the face. Medics described his situation as “a miracle” because the bullet entered his right cheek and exited the left one.

Four other victims were taken to other hospitals.

A nine-hour manhunt ensued with 1,000 police officers and security personnel deployed to the area. The manhunt ended when the terrorist was killed in a shootout by a mosque in Jaffa, a mixed Arab-Jewish city that is adjacent to Tel Aviv. Residents of both cities, which share a municipality, were told to stay indoors as the terrorist was on the loose.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Friday condemned the attack and warned of “copycat attacks” in the coming days while Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said: “Young Israelis who did no harm to anyone were murdered tonight just because they were Israelis.

“This terrorism is the poisoned fruit of ongoing incitement by terrorist organizations,” he added. “We will fight terrorism without compromise.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also issued a rare condemnation of the attack, his second in a week. His statement, however, made sure to mention both Palestinian and Israeli victims. This is in line with his government’s practice of mourning terrorists.

“The killing of Palestinian and Israeli civilians only leads to a further deterioration of the situation, as we are all striving for stability, especially during the holy month of Ramadan and the upcoming Christian and Jewish holidays,” Abbas said.

In the same statement, Abbas warned against revenge attacks and other “provocative actions by extremist Israeli settlers.”