Mohammad Morad Souf

MohammadNovember 15, 2022: Mohammad Morad Sami Souf, 18, was shot and killed by an Israeli security guard in the illegal Israeli colony of Ariel after he allegedly stabbed and killed three Israeli settlers.

Israeli sources reported Tuesday that three Israelis were killed and three were injured in two areas before Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian near Ariel illegal colony near Salfit, in the central part of the occupied West Bank. The incidents occurred in two locations near Ariel when two Palestinians attacked Israeli colonizers at the entrance of the Industrial Zone and a gas station.

Israeli sources identified the three Israelis who were killed as Tamir Avichai, 50, from Kiryat Netafim colony in the northern part of the occupied West Bank, Michael Ledigin, 36+, from Bat-Yam, and Mordechai Ashkenazi, 59, from Yavne.

According to a statement by the Israeli army, a Palestinian arrived at the gate of the Industrial Zone in Ariel and stabbed several Israelis before fleeing the scene. The army denied reports claiming that a second Palestinian was killed. However, it stated that the soldiers were looking for another suspect in the area.

Israeli Ynet News reported that the Palestinian allegedly stabbed a security guard at the gas station’s entrance, then attacked four others with a knife before using a vehicle to escape, ramming one Israeli with the car before soldiers and armed guards opened fire in his direction.

The Israeli media added that a Palestinian fled the scene in a stolen car and was located by the soldiers on Route 5, where they shot and killed him, and said the young man first tried to flee the scene, resulting in a crash involving eight cars before he was fatally shot.

According to Israeli Channel 7, one of the Israelis, in his 40s, died from critical wounds, a second man, also in his 40’s, was wounded at the gas station and succumbed to serious wounds, and the third, in his 30’s, was fatally injured near the gas station.

Channel 7 added that three other Israelis suffered critical or serious wounds and were taken to the Beilinson Medical Center in Petah Tikva.

The Palestinian has been identified as Mohammad Morad Sami Souf, 18, from Haris town near Salfit in the central West Bank.

According to Israeli reports, Mohammad had a permit and worked at a factory in Ariel.

Israeli paramedics rushed to the area, provided treatment to the wounded, and transferred them to Beilinson Medical Center before three of them succumbed to their wounds; three Israelis suffered serious wounds.

The day before this attack, the Palestinian Health Ministry confirmed that Israeli soldiers killed, at dawn, a teenage girl, Folla Rasmi Abdul-Aziz Masalma, 16, in Betunia town after shooting her with a live round in the head while she was a passenger in a car.

Mohammad was from Haris town near Salfit in the central West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Shalom Sofer

November 8, 2022: Shalom Sofer, 63, died from serious wounds he suffered on October 25, reportedly after a Palestinian stabbed him in the Al-Funduq village east of Qalqilia, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

Shalom was pronounced dead  after a sharp deterioration in his condition.

Shalom was a colonialist settler from the Kedumim illegal colony east of Qalqilia in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

Israeli Channel 7 quoted Shalom’s son, Lidor Sofer, stating that his father was recovering but suffered a serious health setback.

The son added that his father was discharged from the hospital last week and seemed to be recovering, but “suddenly, one of his wounds opened.”

The Israeli army said the soldiers arrested a Palestinian, believed to be the one who stabbed Shalom, hours after the attack took place.

Earlier the same day Shalom was stabbed, Israeli soldiers killed five Palestinians and injured twenty-one, including four who suffered life-threatening wounds, during an invasion of the center of Nablus city, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank.

The slain Palestinians have been identified as Zahi Ahmad Baghdadi, 27, Hamdi Sbeih Ramzi Qayyim, 30, Ali Khaled Omar Antar, 26, Hamdi Mohammad Sabri Sharaf, 35, and Wadea’ Sbeih Hweih, 31.

At dawn same day, Israeli soldiers killed Qussai Mahmoud Tamimi, 19, in Nabi Saleh village, northwest of Ramallah in the central West Bank.

Shalom was from Kedumim illegal colony, east of Qalqilia in the northern part of the occupied West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Suleiman al-Hathalin

January 17, 2022: Suleiman al-Hathalin, 75, died from serious wounds he suffered on January 5th, 2022, after an Israeli tow truck ran him over in the Um al-Khair area of Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank.

The Palestinian Health Ministry stated that Suleiman remained in the Intensive Care Unit at the al-Mezan Hospital in Hebron city until he succumbed to the serious wounds he suffered on January 5th, 2022.

Al-Hathalin, 75, a well-known activist from the Um al-Khair area was rammed with a military truck during nonviolent protests that took place after the soldiers invaded Masafer Yatta, causing him to suffer a critical skull fracture.

His injuries were extensive; to the head, chest, abdomen, and pelvis, medical sources at the al-Mezan hospital have confirmed.

Fouad al-Amour, the Coordinator of the Protection and Steadfastness Committees in Masafer Yatta, stated after the elderly man was rammed and seriously injured, that the army invaded the area, accompanying a tow truck, and seized several Palestinian-owned vehicles, leading to protests, and added that local Palestinians gathered in the area to stop the Israeli army from confiscating their privately-owned vehicles when the tow truck drove over Suleiman.

His family said it will be filing a suit against the Israeli police for the excessive use of force against him, especially since he was repeatedly assaulted and abducted by the soldiers and the police, in various previous attacks, despite his old age and frail body.

Suleiman was a prominent figure and has been part of ongoing protests, especially after Israel confiscated Palestinian lands in the 1980s, and built the illegal Carmiel colony.

After the colony was built on the stolen lands, the Palestinians were denied the right to build homes in the area, an issue that forced them to live in tin houses and tents that have been demolished more than fifteen times.

The Israeli army previously demolished Suleiman’s home, after alleging it was close to Carmiel colony which was built on stolen Palestinian lands.

Suleiman’s family was displaced from the Arad area in the Negev desert when Israel was established in the historic land of Palestine in the year 1948.

Video By WAFA

The family then moved to the area east of Yatta town, south of Hebron, and in the year 1965 they bought the land where they built and resided, however, Israel illegally annexed Palestinian lands, including part of Suleiman’s land, and built the illegal Karmiel colony in the year 1980, and has since been expanding it by further theft of land.

On January 12, Israeli soldiers killed an elderly man, identified as Omar Abul-Majid As’ad, 80, after detaining and constantly assaulting him in an under-construction building in Jaljulia village, north of the central West Bank city of Ramallah, before detaining and constantly assaulting.

Suleiman was from Um al-Khair area of Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Mohammad Ali Khabisa

September 24, 2021: Mohammad Ali Khabisa, 28, was killed by Israeli soldiers who shot him with a live round to the head, in Sbeih Mountain in Beita town, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus.

Palestinian medical sources said Mohammad was shot with a live round in the head, in Sbeih Mountain, and was rushed to the an-Najah Hospital, in Nablus, where he succumbed to his very serious injuries.

The slain young man is a married father of an infant girl, only eight months of age, and is the eighth to be killed in Sbeih Mountain since the protests started 140 days ago after illegal Israeli colonizers installed an outpost on private Palestinian lands.

During Friday protests, Israeli soldiers also injured 29 Palestinians, including eight who were shot with rubber-coated steel bullets, 18 who suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation, and two who suffered burns.

Beita has been witnessing constant protests, and repeated Israeli military invasions and violations since the illegal Israeli colonizers occupied the top of Sbeih Mountain and installed an outpost they named “Avitar.”

Following ongoing protests, the colonists left the outpost on July 2nd, but it was not dismantled, and they installed it again.

The outpost was installed in May of this year after the colonists kept trying to build a colony on the Palestinian lands five times in the last 30 years.

The Mountain, owned by the Palestinians, has significant strategic importance, especially since if it is occupied by the colonizers the colony would lead to the annexation of 20 Dunams of Palestinian lands, and would also lead to the isolation of a large area of Palestinian lands.

Mohammad was from Beita, south of Nablus. Source: IMEMC

Shafiqa Mohammad Suleiman Aqel

April 7th, 2021: Shafiqa Mohammad Suleiman Aqel, 73, was killed after being rammed by the speeding vehicle of an illegal Israeli colonialist settler at the western entrance of the Sammoa’ town, southwest of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.

Medical sources said the woman, identified as Shafiqa Mohammad Suleiman Aqel, 73, suffered very serious wounds when the colonist’s car rammed her in the Mothallath as-Simia area, near as-Sammoa’.

They added that an Israeli ambulance was called to the scene before the medics rushed her to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba (Be’er as-Sabe’), where she succumbed to her serious wounds.

Such incidents are frequent and have led to many Palestinian casualties, in various parts of the West Bank.

It is worth mentioning that Shafiqa is the 11th Palestinian to be killed by Israelis this year – the third to be killed in a vehicle ramming incident.

On Friday, February 12th, 2021, a Palestinian man, identified as Bilal Shehada Bawatna, 52, was killed and two were injured, after being rammed by an illegal Israeli colonist’s car, while participating in a nature walk activity in the Northern Plains of the occupied West Bank.

On February 10, a Palestinian man, identified as Azzam Jamil Amer, from Kafr Qalil village near Ramallah, was killed after being rammed by an Israeli colonists’ car near Salfit, in central West Bank.

On January 31, the soldiers shot and killed Mohammad Hussein Amro, 35, from Halhoul, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron,

On January 26, the soldiers shot and killed Atallah Mohammad Rayyan, 17, near Salfit in central West Bank.

On January 11, the Israeli police killed Bashar Zubeidat, 18, during a protest against police violence near Haifa.

Shafiqa was from Hebron district in the southern West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Esther Horgan

December 21st, 2020: Esther Horgan, 52, was found dead, Monday, near Tel Menashe illegal colony, near Nablus, in the northern part of the occupied West Bank, in what Israel speculates an attack carried out by a Palestinian when she went for a jog in a nearby forest.

Israeli media sources said the corpse of Esther Horgan, 52, a mother of six, was found in the forest close to her home earlier Monday, and added that the attack resulted in a broken skull along with other injuries.

They stated that Horgan left her residence on Sunday afternoon and went jogging in the forest, but never returned home. Her husband then contacted the police before they initiated a search.

After her body was located, the Israeli army and the police initiated a massive search campaign to locate the person/s responsible for her death. Her family and friends started looking for her on Sunday afternoon after she went missing.

Three days after her body was found, Israeli forces abducted a man they claim was suspected of being responsible for her death.

In related news, Israeli sources said a settler, 18 years of age, was killed and four others were injured, during a chase by the Israeli police after they hurled stones at Palestinian vehicles near Ramallah, in central West Bank.

The Police said one of its undercover units ordered the vehicle to stop and gave chase after the driver refused to pull over and sped away before the vehicle slid and crashed.

Five settlers who were in the vehicle were injured, four of them suffered mild wounds, and one, identified as Ahuvya Sandak, 19, was pinned under the car and died at the scene.

Esther was from Tal Menashe colony in the northern West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Rina Shnerb

Rina ShnerbAugust 23, 2019: Rina Shnerb, 17, from Lod, was killed, while her brother Dvir, 19, suffered serious wounds, and her father Eitan, 46, was mildly injured, when an improvised explosive went off near them while they were hiking near a spring northwest of Ramallah, in the central part of the occupied West Bank.

Israeli sources have reported that Rina was killed, while her brother and father were injured, when a bomb went off near them while hiking near the illegal Dolev colony, in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli army said the bomb was placed by Palestinians and initiated a massive search campaign in the area.

The three Israelis were moved to Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem; the condition of her brother was described as serious but stable, and he was placed in the Intensive Care Unit for monitoring.

The area where the explosion took place, filled with olive groves, is a destination for many Israeli hikers in the occupied West Bank, and the Palestinians are largely denied access to the land, despite having proof of ownership of the land.

Following the incident, the Israeli army closed the area around Deir Ibzi’ village, west of Ramallah.

The soldiers also closed all main roads leading to Palestinian villages west of Ramallah, while more troops were deployed on roads leading to Ramallah and al-Biereh governorate.

The closures and extensive military deployments were focused in Wad ad-Dalb area, west of Ramallah, Kafr Ni’ma village, Ein Ayyoub Junction and Ras Karkar village, where the soldiers stormed and ransacked dozens of homes and stores, and detained a Palestinian photojournalist, identified as Hisham Abu Shaqra.

In addition, the army closed the roads linking between Sarda village and al-Irsal Street, in addition to Ein Siniya junction, at the northern entrance of Ramallah, before stopping and searching dozens of Palestinian cars.

The army also invaded Betunia town, west of Ramallah, especially the area of its main roundabout in the town’s center, and prevented Palestinians from entering or leaving it.

In addition, dozens of illegal Israeli colonists closed the main roads linking between Huwwara town, south of Nablus in northern West Bank, and several other surrounding areas, and began throwing stones at Palestinian cars.

The colonists mainly gathered on Yitzhar road, where they attacked many Palestinian cars, while Israeli soldiers did not try to stop them.

Rina was from Lod, in western Israel. Source: IMEMC

Dvir Sorek

Dvir Sorek

August 8, 2019: Dvir Sorek, 19, an off-duty Israeli soldier, was found stabbed to death on the side of the road near the Palestinian village of Beit Fajjar.

Israeli authorities announced Thursday morning that they had found Dvir’s body on the side of a road in the  south-central part of the West Bank, and believe he was the victim of an attack.

The perpetrators of the attack remain unknown, although Israeli authorities say they assume the attackers were Palestinian.

The nearest Palestinian village to the location where the body was found is Beit Fajjar, south of Bethlehem. Israeli forces stormed the village and put a complete closure on the area.

Dvir was a settler living illegally on stolen Palestinian land in the settlement of Ofra.

He was a student of the Jewish religion at a yeshiva (religious Jewish college) in the settlement where he lived. He was also an active duty Israeli soldier.

According to Israeli sources, Dvir had gone to Jerusalem to shop, but did not return home. His family reported him missing Wednesday night, and police began a search, finding his body about 2:30 am Thursday morning.

The Israeli military say their theory is that Sorek was pulled into a vehicle and killed, then dumped on the side of the road, and they presume that this was done by Palestinians.

An Israeli military spokesperson told the Israeli paper Ha’aretz that the military is “beginning to carry out steps on the working assumption that there is a terrorist cell in the area that carried out the attack.”

The Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that the military is “in pursuit now in order to capture the despicable terrorist and bring him to justice.”

The military has closed off nearby Palestinian villages and invaded them, issuing an order for Palestinians to remain in their homes.

This comes on the eve of the major Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha, when many Palestinian families were planning to visit family in different parts of the West Bank. The curfews and closures have forced the families to remain indoors, and are a type of collective punishment on the Palestinian population in the area.

Ahiad Ettinger

ahiad-ettingerMarch 19, 2019: Rabbi Ahiad Ettinger, 47, was killed in a shooting near the settlement of Ariel in Salfit, in the northern West Bank.

Two Israelis were killed in the attack – one a soldier, the other Rabbie Ettinger, and two other Israelis were wounded.

The soldier who was killed was Lt. Gal Keidan, 19.

The location of the attack is just north of Salfit village, where, four days earlier, invading Israeli forces killed 23-year old Mohammad Jamil Shahin and wounded 40 other Palestinians.

According to Israeli media sources, an unknown Palestinian allegedly arrived at the Ariel Junction checkpoint and stabbed an Israeli soldier, killing him. The assailant then allegedly picked up the soldier’s gun and shot another soldier at the checkpoint.

Israeli sources state that the Palestinian assailant then began firing at Israeli vehicles driving by on the Israeli-only road in front of the settlement.

The assailant then allegedly stole a car of an Israeli settler and drove off carrying the soldier’s gun, arriving a couple minutes later to the Gitai Junction checkpoint.

He then allegedly abandoned the car and fled on foot toward the nearby Palestinian village of Burkin.

According to a report by the Israeli Ynetnews, Rabbi Ettinger was in a car and initially drove past the scene. He then turned his car around and drew his weapon, and was about to fire at the suspect when he was shot in the head. He remained in critical condition until his death two days later on March 19th.

Ettinger was a father of twelve, including one who is currently serving in the Israeli military. Rabbi Ettinger was head of the Oz V’emuna Hesder Yeshiva in southern Tel Aviv.

Following the attack, Israeli forces immediately sealed the area and launched a massive invasion of Burkin, Salfit and other area villages, preventing thousands of Palestinians from leaving their homes, go to work, or conduct their daily lives as the military invasion is in progress.

According to the Yeshiva World newspaper, the Israeli military is using a protocol they call “Pressure Cooker”, which involves Israeli army “payloaders, large armored vehicles, elite forces, the Oketz K9 unit, drones, and a chopper hovering overhead”. The protocol also authorizes the demolition of a building on the assailant, if the Israeli army decides that he is inside.

The Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that he was sure that the Israeli military would find those responsible for the attack and “bring them to justice as we have in all previous cases.”

Ahiad’s death marks the third Israeli to be killed by a Palestinian in 2019. During that same time period, 30 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers, including 8 children.

Ahiad was from the illegal West Bank settlement of Eli, constructed on stolen Palestinian land between the cities of Nablus and Ramallah in the central part of the West Bank. Source: IMEMC

Ori Ansbacher

Ori AnsbacherFebruary 7, 2019: Ori Ansbacher, 19, was killed and her body left in Ein Yael forest, East Jerusalem. A Palestinian man was arrested in connection with the murder, but Israeli police are unclear as to whether his motivation for the killing was political or criminal in nature.

The young woman who was killed was identified as Ori Ansbacher, 19, a resident of Tekoa illegal colony,  in the West Bank.

Two days later, Israeli military police detained 29-year-old Arafat Irfayia, a Palestinian from Hebron, in connection with the murder.

Just after arresting Irfayia, the Israeli military invaded his family’s home to take measurements in order to demolish it.

Israeli military forces frequently demolish the homes of Palestinians suspected of carrying out attacks against Israelis, in an act that violates international legal prohibitions against the use of collective punishment.

Her body had been found stripped naked in the forest, which is unheard of in politically-motivated killings of Israelis by Palestinians.

On Saturday, hundreds of Israelis came to a candlelight vigil honoring the young women, and some of those participating in the vigil called for revenge against all Palestinians in response to the murder of the young woman.

One of the protesters at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv, said that “Israel needs to deport the Palestinians to Syria, or hang them in Rabin Square.”

Ori was a resident of Tekoa illegal colony,  in the West Bank. Source: IMEMC