Palestinian gunmen opened fire at hundreds of Jewish worshipers at a shrine known as Joseph's Tomb outside the West Bank city of Nablus early Thursday, wounding three people, including a commander of the IDF brigade securing the visit.
Israeli troops returned fire and evacuated the worshipers from the site where some Jews believe the biblical Joseph is buried. Jewish worshipers often visit the shrine to pray escorted by the Israeli military.
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Jewish worshipers come under fire from Palestinian gunmen near Joseph's Tomb in Nablus early Thursday
(צילום: ציון משה ביטון)
The worshipers, numbering in the hundreds, entered the site under heavy military guard to celebrate a religious festival at the tomb which has taken on increased importance as a pilgrimage site in recent years.
The military said there has been a noticeable uptick in violence in the Nablus area in recent weeks and that they were investigating the incident.
Palestinians open fire at worshipers at Joesph's Tomb in Nablus
Last month, a Palestinian teen was killed and at least 15 Palestinians were wounded in clashes with the military near the shrine, according to the Palestinian official news agency Wafa.
In April, Palestinians set fire to the shrine before they were dispersed by Palestinian security forces, an incident that drew condemnation from Israeli leaders.
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Worshipers pray at Joseph's Tomb during religious festival early Thursday
(Photo: TPS)
The site was later patched up by a group of settlers led by Shomron Regional Council Yossi Dagan.
Dagan said at the time that Israel was asserting its sovereignty over the site by rebuilding what had been destroyed there.
Thursday's clash was the latest in a wave of violence that has persisted for months following a string of deadly attacks inside Israel, which left 19 people dead. The terror wave prompted Israeli counterterrorism raids across the West Bank.