Two Israelis were murdered on Sunday in a terrorist shooting attack in the town of Huwara in the northern West Bank. The victims were brothers Hillel Menachem and Yigal Ya’acov Yaniv.
The search for the terrorist was ongoing at press time.
The terrorist used a car to ram into an Israeli vehicle that was driving through the town and then shot the two passengers at close range. The terrorist escaped from the scene.
The brothers were residents of the Har Bracha settlement in Samaria, near Nablus. Hillel had just completed his service in the Israeli Navy.
"It cannot be that in the light of day, terrorists allow themselves to shoot innocent civilians, the insolence of terrorism proves that there is no deterrence."
Samaria Regional Council Head Yossi Dagan
Magen David Adom paramedic Gil Bismuth, who arrived at the scene, said he and his colleagues “saw the two wounded men lying near the vehicle unconscious. Along with an IDF medical team, we gave them initial medical treatment in the field, put them in military intensive-care vehicles, and they were evacuated to the hospital in critical condition.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “We will continue to act by all means necessary, with security, operational activities and with legislation, to deter the terrorists and maintain Israel’s security.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant directed the security forces’ operational and intelligence units to focus their efforts on catching the terrorists, using all means necessary, including preemptive strikes, to prevent future attacks. He also approved temporarily expanding the number of forces in the West Bank to better blanket the area.
The meeting led by Gallant included IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi, Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar, OC IDF Intelligence Corps Maj.-Gen. Aharon Hulia, Defense Ministry Director-General Eyal Zamir and others.
Halevi had made calming the West Bank situation one of his top priorities leading into Ramadan next month, both to avoid a full-fledged intifada and to be able to eventually reposition his forces back to the northern and southern fronts, which present greater long-term threats.
After a meeting among IDF Central Command, the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) and the Border Police on Sunday evening, it was decided to intensify checkpoints around Nablus and to reinforce security forces throughout Samaria.
Israel Police Insp.-Gen. Kobi Shabtai extended his condolences to the family.
West Bank regional head calls on gov't to 'move from defense to offense'
“We are in a very sensitive situation, and it requires all of us to be on full operational alert, so I request that all officers check readiness in their units and make sure that all police officers are prepared,” he said in a statement shortly after the attack. “The Israel Police have entered maximum alert to be at a full level of operational instruction.”
Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan called on the government to “change the paradigm and move from defense to offense. It cannot be that in the light of day, terrorists allow themselves to shoot innocent civilians. The insolence of terrorism proves that there is no deterrence. The people of Israel and the residents of Samaria are strong. We will not break in the face of the murderous terrorism of the Palestinian Authority.”
Beit El Mayor Shai Alon, who was in a car ahead of the victims, said: “The shooting happened right behind me. It looked terrible – it was gunshots [at] point-blank [range]. You are surrounded from the left and right sides; there is no way to escape. It cannot be that terrorists can possess weapons so easily and to freely fire [on Israeli civilians] point blank in broad daylight.”
The terrorist attack showed that there is “a total lack of control in Judea and Samaria, that the threat... is worse than ever before” and that Israel must declare an “all-out war” to restore security, he said.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid extended condolences to the families of the victims and said he has “full trust that the security forces will catch the murderers.”
"The resistance in the West Bank will remain present and escalating, and no plan or summit will be able to stop it."
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassam
Palestinians handed out sweets in Nablus, Jenin and the Gaza Strip shortly after the attack in celebration.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassam called the terrorist attack a “natural reaction to the occupation’s crimes” and that “the resistance in the West Bank would remain present and escalating, and no plan or summit will be able to stop it.”Two Jews were murdered in a shooting by #Palestinian terrorists today. This is how Palestinians in the West Bank responded. This culture of hate starts with distributing sweets. It ends with innocents being butchered. pic.twitter.com/ggre1Z7o9A
— Israel ישראל (@Israel) February 26, 2023
Hours after the attack, settlers torched Palestinian houses and clashed with Palestinians in and near Huwara.
Footage from Huwara taken shortly after the attack showed a house belonging to a local Palestinian on fire, reportedly after it was torched by settlers. Later in the evening, settlers torched another house. According to initial reports, the residents of the second house were still in the building when it was torched, and their condition was unclear.
Dozens of Israelis arrived in the area of Huwara to protest on Sunday evening, as mosques in Huwara published messages calling on Palestinians to confront settlers, burning tires after they entered the town. Footage showed a large fire amid the clashes.
Palestinian vehicles in the town were torched by settlers during the demonstrations, while a house in Asira al-Qibliya, northwest of Huwara, was torched by settlers as well, according to Palestinian reports. Palestinian media reports said settlers near Salfit had thrown stones at Palestinian vehicles.
According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, 98 Palestinians were injured in Huwara, including one who was stabbed, one who was assaulted with an iron rod and many others who suffered from tear-gas inhalation. Three Palestinian ambulances were reportedly attacked and damaged.
Aqaba security summit
The attack came just hours after Israeli media outlets reported that the defense establishment had decided to reduce operations in the West Bank in an effort to calm the situation ahead of Ramadan.
Israel, the PA, Egypt, Jordan and the US are holding a summit in Aqaba to try and calm tensions in the region. The summit has drawn widespread condemnation from Palestinian factions, with media affiliated with Hamas calling it “a prelude to eliminating the resistance of the West Bank at the hands of Palestinians.”
“The fascist Zionist government is suffering from internal political fractures. We oppose the summit in Aqaba and see it as shameful. We salute the resistance fighters who fight against Israel’s crimes. All attempts to destroy resistance will fail.”
Yanal Phriha’at
Jordanian parliament member Yanal Phriha’at welcomed the terrorist attack, saying, “The fascist Zionist government is suffering from internal political fractures. We oppose the summit in Aqaba and see it as shameful. We salute the resistance fighters who fight against Israel’s crimes. All attempts to destroy resistance will fail.”
Following the attack, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on the Israeli delegation in Aqaba to return to Israel. De-escalation “would only be achieved when the IDF strikes the terrorist cities and brigades without mercy,” he said.