IDF Kills Wanted Terrorist in Counterterrorism Raid in West Bank

A wanted terrorist was one of three people reportedly killed in a gun battle in the West Bank (biblical Judea and Samaria) city of Nablus on Tuesday morning.

Nablus, the biblical city of Shechem, is under Palestinian Authority control and is one of the West Bank’s largest cities.

In a statement, the Israeli security forces said they were conducting counterterrorism activities in Nablus.  According to an Israel Defense Forces (IDF) statement, Ibrahim Al-Nablusi and others had barricaded themselves in a residential building in the city and fired on Israelis forces.

“Israel Police forces fired toward the building using special weaponry, including a shoulder-fired missile,” and Al-Nablusi and another assailant were killed, the statement said.

Dozens of Palestinians rioted at the same time, hurling rocks, and explosive devices at Israeli forces, the IDF said.  The forces responded with “riot dispersal means and live fire.”

According to media reports, Palestinians said three people were killed and 40 wounded in the battle.

Al-Nablusi, who headed the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, was suspected of carrying out a number of terror attacks recently including a shooting attack at Joseph’s Tomb in June, in which two Israeli citizens and an IDF commander were wounded.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade also claimed responsibility for a shooting attacking in Bnei Brak, near Tel Aviv, earlier this year, in which five people were killed.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades is a union of armed groups known as the military wing of the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah faction.

The IDF said it had also carried out other counterterrorism activities in Judea and Samaria, arresting four suspects and confiscating weapons.

The follows Israel’s three-day battle with Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorists in the Gaza Strip that ended in a ceasefire on Sunday night.

Israel re-opened the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza, allowing 14,000 Gazans to go to work in Israel on Tuesday. 

Muhammad al-Hindi, head of the political department of the PIJ, said it was Egypt that had reached in understanding with Israel and it is obligated “to implement what it announced.”

“There were no direct understandings between the Jihad terrorist organization and Israel, but Egypt was the one who did it,” al-Hindi was quoted as saying. “Israel is procrastinating and lying so as not to link what is happening in Judea and Samaria with the Gaza Strip.”

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Monday evening. Lapid thanked him for his “crucial role in reaching a ceasefire and maintaining regional stability.”  He also said the Israeli operation in Gaza was successful.

“In Operation Breaking Dawn, Israel reclaimed initiative. It restored Israel’s deterrence. All our goals were achieved. The entire senior military command of Islamic Jihad in Gaza was successfully targeted within three days. The strength and ingenuity of the Israel Defense Forces dealt a devastating blow to the enemy,” Lapid said in a statement.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz also said Israel would do what it needs to maintain security.

“The Hamas terrorist organization bears territorial responsibility in the Gaza Strip. Wherever this responsibility is not implemented, we will operate forcefully and use all the means at our disposal – both military and civilian. We will operate in accordance with our need and considerations,” Gantz said.