At least one person was killed and several others injured in central Israel, emergency officials said, and police said they were investigating the shooting as a possible terrorist attack.
Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) announced that a man in his 30s was shot dead at a gas station in Kochab Yair, a town on the Green Line that separates Israel from the occupied West Bank. Five other people were injured at at least three separate scenes, two of them in critical condition, the MDA said.
Police said they had “neutralized” the suspect after locating a vehicle believed to have been involved in the shooting. Police often used the term “neutralize” to refer to killing a suspect. Israeli security sources said the suspect is an Israeli Palestinian from Taybeh, an Arab town just north of Kochab Yair.
Security forces conducted additional searches in the area to determine if anyone else was involved in the attack.
On Sunday afternoon, police arrested a second suspect allegedly involved in the attack. Police said the suspect attempted to stab detectives with a glass bottle while being taken into custody.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assessed the situation after the attack, according to a statement from the prime minister’s office. “I commend the rapid response team that acted immediately against the terrorists,” Prime Minister Netanyahu said at a government meeting on Sunday. “I commend the Israeli police officers who neutralized the terrorist and arrested his accomplices.”
After the shooting, far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for “profound change” for Israel’s Arab population and a crackdown on illegal weapons in communities. “The equation is simple: Anyone who accepts national sovereignty will live here in peace,” Smotrich said. “Those who choose the path of fear will have blood rushing to their heads.”
Hamas praised the attack, claiming it was carried out in response to “the occupation’s continued attacks on the Gaza Strip” and “the attacks that daily affect our people in the West Bank and Jerusalem.”
