Two terror attacks in Judea and Samaria injured three soldiers on Wednesday evening

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that two reserve soldiers were injured in a shooting incident at the Reihan Crossing in the area of Menashe, near Jenin. 

“Earlier today (Wednesday), a reservist soldier from the 5703 Search and Rescue Battalion and a reservist soldier from the 703 Maintenance Battalion were severely injured during an incident in the Reihan Crossing area,” the IDF statement said. “The soldiers were evacuated to the hospital to receive medical treatment, and their families have been notified.” 

The IDF sent units to the area to search for the shooting suspects, and admitted it could have been a drive-by attack. 

The injured soldiers were taken to Rambam Hospital in Haifa, and later reports indicated their condition was serious. According to a statement in Ynet, the hospital said, “Both are sedated and on a ventilator, suffering from gunshot wounds to the upper body and are expected to undergo surgery in the coming hours.” 

The son of one of the reserve soldiers injured in the attack told Ynet news that his father was driving the car with three other soldiers when the attack happened. Despite being shot in the hand, shattering the bones, and receiving several hits in the upper body, his father continued driving for about four minutes, until reaching the next security post, where he pulled over to receive assistance for himself and the other injured reserve soldier. 

“My father is a hero,” he said. 

Around the same time, in the southern area of Judea, near Hebron, a reserve officer was wounded in a ramming attack. The driver tried to exit his vehicle with a knife after hitting the first soldier, and was shot and killed by another soldier on the scene before he could injure anyone else. 

After the shooting attack near Jenin, Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, called on the military “to flatten the Jenin refugee camp” in response to the attack. 

“I expect and demand that the government of Israel instruct the IDF to flatten the Jenin refugee camp – Din Jenin, the terror capital of northern Samaria, in accordance with the law of Khan Yunis and Rafah,” Dagan said. 

Dagan has a history of similar statements following previous terror attacks. The council head also called on the government to approve more settlements in the area of northern Samaria. 

Meanwhile, Hebron Hills Regional Council head Eliram Azoulay, said regarding the ramming attack near Hebron, “I once again call for the implementation of the council's demand to create a security perimeter around the settlements and main roads in order to ensure the security of our residents.” 

Referring to the two attacks, Azoulay said the terrorists should be treated like the Hamas terrorists in Gaza, "The terrorists from the two attacks that took place must be punished like the Hamas terrorists.” 

He called on the security forces to enter the towns, find the perpetrators and “bring them to justice to the fullest extent.”  

On Wednesday night, acting on intelligence from Shin Bet, officers of the police’s elite Gideonim unit (Unit 33) and IDF soldiers entered the town of Barta’a and apprehended the suspect involved in the shooting incident in the Reihan Crossing area. 

The IDF said that due to precise intelligence provided by the Shin Bet, the forces were able to encircle the suspect’s residence, and he eventually turned himself in. 

Additionally, the Shin Bet and Israel Police announced the arrest of two Israeli Arabs from the town of Deir el-Asad in northern Israel, who they said were planning to carry out a ramming attack. 

Police said that Abdelrahman Omar, 29, and Nahar Assadi, 22, had planned an attack in Karmiel after consuming ISIS-affiliated content on social media. 

According to the indictment filed against the two, they met at the house of Omar’s grandfather and discussed the Gaza War, at which point, Omar recruited Assadi to carry out the attack.