Car-ramming and stabbing near Gush Etzion kills one, wounds three
A combined car-ramming and stabbing attack on Tuesday near Israeli settlements in the southern occupied West Bank left a 30-year-old man dead and three others injured, Israeli emergency services and the military said.
Magen David Adom (MDA) said paramedics and an army medical team established the death of a 30-year-old man from a stab wound and transported three injured people to two hospitals in Jerusalem. The injured include a woman in her 40s in serious condition, a man in his 30s and a boy of about 15, both in moderate condition.
In a separate release the army described the incident as a 'ramming and stabbing attack in the area of Gush Etzion Junction' and said soldiers 'eliminated two terrorists at the scene' and discovered explosive materials in the attackers' vehicle. The military added that searches, roadblocks and area encirclement were underway.
The Israeli West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba, near Hebron, identified the fatality as local resident Aharon Cohen. The Palestinian Civil Affairs Authority named the assailants as Imran al-Atrash and Walid Sabbarna, both 18 and from the Hebron area, and said Israeli forces were holding their bodies.
Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem reported the woman in serious condition had sustained a gunshot wound to her lower body and was undergoing surgery. Israeli media reported she may have been accidentally shot by Israeli security forces.
Responses and wider context
The Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas praised the attack, calling it 'the heroic car-ramming and stabbing attack' and framing it as a response to what it described as attempts to 'liquidate the Palestinian cause' and increased aggression by soldiers and settlers. The militant group Palestinian Islamic Jihad also commended the attackers.
'The heroic car-ramming and stabbing attack that took place near the Gush Etzion settlement... is a natural response' — Hamas statement
Local Israeli leaders responded strongly. Yaron Rosenthal, head of the Gush Etzion regional council, said residents 'together with the army, will make the terrorists and all their community pay a very high price.' The Yesha Council, representing Israeli settlements in the West Bank, blamed the incident on the government's refusal to annex Palestinian territory.
Violence in the West Bank has surged since the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023 and the subsequent Gaza war. According to the Palestinian health ministry, at least 1,007 Palestinians — including militants — have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers since the war began. Official Israeli figures report that 43 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the West Bank during the same period.
Security operations and investigations were ongoing at the scene.
