Israel's military decided to boost forces in the West Bank as efforts continued on Monday to locate the gunmen who opened fire in a passing car at Israelis standing at a major intersection in the West Bank a day earlier, wounding three of them.
The assailants escaped the scene of the attack at Tapuach Junction in a car with Palestinian license plates. The military said troops fired towards the car, but the perpetrators were able to flee. Security forces immediately launched a manhunt for the attackers.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said the forces are being boosted not only to assist with the manhunt but also for fear of further attacks, which might be carried out in the wake of the cancellation of the Palestinian elections that Israel is being blamed for.
In the meantime, Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva where the wounded were taken after the attack said the condition of Yehuda Guetta, 19, remains critical, while the condition Bania Peretz, 19, is described as serious.
The third person who was wounded in the drive-by shooting, 19-year-old Amichai Hala, has been released from the hospital, having sustained mild injuries.
Hala told Ynet about the terrifying first moments of when the attack occurred. "We were talking to some guys at the bus station and suddenly I heard a loud noise and gun shots. We quickly lay down on the floor. I was with my back to the terrorists and only after I lay down did I realize they shot at us and fled towards Nablus."
He said it was a "miracle" he was only lightly hurt.
"Very quickly they started evacuating the wounded and then I saw that I was hurt by a bullet in the back. It was only when I was on the floor that I realized it was a terror attack. If I was standing a millimeter to the right or to the left, my situation would have been different."
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there would be a harsh response. “We will not allow terrorism to raise its head and we will strike our enemies with force,” he said.