1 killed, 3 injured in ramming and stabbing attack – Firstpost

One person was killed and three others were injured in a car crash and stabbing attack in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Tuesday, the Israeli military and ambulance service said, calling the incident a terrorist attack.

The Israeli army said in a statement that soldiers also killed two attackers. It said explosive material was found in the attackers’ vehicle and it was being defused by bomb disposal teams. No group immediately claimed responsibility.

The attack occurred at a busy junction between Bethlehem and Hebron, which leads to a cluster of Israeli settlements known as the Etzion Bloc. According to the Israeli Ambulance Service, a 30-year-old man died from stab wounds, while a woman was in critical condition and a man and a boy were slightly injured.

The incident comes as tensions remain high amid the Gaza war, where a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been in place since October 10. In the West Bank, Palestinians have faced tightened military restrictions as well as an increase in violent attacks by Jewish settlers.

International pressure is increasing on Israel to stop violence against migrants. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he would urgently call cabinet ministers to bring to justice Israelis involved in recent attacks on Palestinians.

On Monday, Israeli settlers set fire to homes and vehicles in Jaba, a Palestinian village near Bethlehem, following an earlier attack on property and civilians in the nearby village of Sa’ir, WAFA quoted officials as saying.

“Jewish rioters in Judea and Samaria harm the State of Israel, dishonor Judaism and harm the settlement project,” Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar posted on Twitter.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, settlers carried out at least 264 attacks on Palestinians in October – the highest monthly figure since the UN began tracking such incidents in 2006.

Home to 2.7 million Palestinians, the West Bank remains the center of long-standing proposals for a future Palestinian state with Israel. However, successive Israeli governments have encouraged rapid settlement expansion, further fragmenting the area.