An Israeli civilian security guard who was attacked with a hammer by a Palestinian worker in the Bar-On industrial park in the West Bank has died from his injuries, Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva announced Sunday evening.
The assault occurred earlier on Sunday near the settlement of Kedumim, where the assailant, after seizing the guard's gun, fled the scene in a stolen vehicle. The industrial park employs both Israelis and Palestinians under heightened security protocols.
The scene of the attack near Kedumim
The victim, who was later identified as 35-year-old Gideon Peri from Kedumim, initially reported to be in critical condition, was transported by military ambulance and treated for severe head injuries before succumbing to his wounds. Peri is survived by his wife, three children, parents and siblings.
The IDF has launched a manhunt for the attacker, who remains at large. Residents of Kedumim were instructed to stay indoors as the search continued. "Due to a security incident near the settlement, residents should enter their homes, lock doors and windows, and avoid walking outside or traveling in the area. Emergency calls should be made only for urgent matters," residents were told.
The victim brought to Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva
(Video: Shaul Golan)
"Deterrence must be restored. This attack could not have happened without the incitement and funding of terrorism by the Palestinian Authority (PA)," Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, said in response to the attack.
"The assailant will receive a hefty salary for life from Abu Mazen, the suit-wearing terrorist coordinating with Hamas. Upon his release, he will receive a general's pension from the Palestinian 'police,' which are supposed to fight terrorism under the Oslo Accords," Dagan added, using the name that PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is popularly known by and referring to the PA's controversial policy of compensating Palestinians who carry out attacks against Israeli civilians and security forces, often criticized as a "pay for slay" scheme. "It’s time for the Israeli government to wake up and recognize our enemies."
This incident follows two recent shooting attacks in the West Bank's Qalqilya and the Jordan Valley. Last Sunday, Yonatan Deutsch, a 23-year-old from Beit She’an, was killed in a shooting attack in the Jordan Valley, and Anas Jaramaneh, a 32-year-old from Muqeibleh, was lightly injured. The initial report of the attack came from Jaramaneh, who notified the IDF that his car had been shot at.
Forces found him near Mehola on Highway 90, where they saw that his car windows had been shattered. While he was being treated, searches for the shooters began, and 250 yards from where Jaramaneh was hit, forces discovered Deutsch, who had been critically injured in the attack. He was pronounced dead shortly after.
A day later, a 60-year-old Israeli man was critically wounded in a shooting at a garage in Qalqilya. He was initially treated at a Palestinian hospital and later transferred to Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba once his condition stabilized. Two Palestinians were also injured in the shooting.
The assailant, Tareq Daoud, an 18-year-old who was previously released from Israeli prison in a November deal that freed 80 hostages from Hamas captivity in Gaza, was killed by Colonel Natanel Moshkovitz, the commander of the Ephraim Brigade. This was the first time since the deal that a released prisoner was involved in an attack causing serious injury to an Israeli.
First published: 18:04, 08.18.24