A house on a northern Israeli kibbutz adjacent to the West Bank border fence was struck Sunday morning by gunfire from a nearby Palestinian village. There was minor property damage to the Kibbutz Merav home, but no injuries were reported.
Kibbutz residents reported that dozens of shooting incidents from the nearby Palestinian village of Jalbun have occurred over the past year. They warn that without a change in the situation, this trend could soon lead to casualties.
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Kibbutz Merav home struck by gunfire from adjacent Palestinian village
(Photo: Elad Armon)
"We were cleaning the kitchen for Passover and I heard glass shattering," recounted homeowner Hila Ramon. "The children also heard gunshots; it took me a moment to realize it wasn't something breaking during the cleaning. A bullet hit the glass of the living room door that opens to the balcony, and the children were right in the line of fire. Noga, who is 8 years old, was the closest. Had the window been open, someone from our family could have been hurt. It was a big miracle.
"We feel helpless. I demand the army stop this firing and allow us to move around our homes safely. It's a solvable issue; those responsible need to be moved away from the line of fire. Once it hits our neighborhood, it's only a matter of time before there are casualties.”
Following the incident, IDF forces set up checkpoints in the area and began scanning for suspects. The army reported that during a search in Jalbun, terrorists threw an explosive device at the troops. There were no casualties or damage reported.
Meanwhile, an Israeli was lightly injured by an explosive device while trying to remove a Palestinian flag near the northern West Bank settlement of Kokhav HaShahar on Sunday morning.
Footage of the incident shows the man approaching the flag and kicking it, setting off an explosive device. It is currently unclear whether the flag itself was booby-trapped or if the explosive device was placed nearby. Security forces and first responders were dispatched to the scene.
Earlier, IDF forces neutralized two terrorists who attacked them at the Beit Einun junction between Kiryat Arba and Gush Etzion. One of the terrorists lunged at the soldiers with a knife while the second assailant opened fire at them. There were no casualties among the soldiers.