Latest Israeli-Palestinian violence leaves two dead

The two victims are fully conscious and receiving medical treatment at the scene and are being prepared to be transferred to hospital for further treatment.

A man seen in a video beating a Palestinian stabber after he had already been shot by police was doing so to disarm the attacker, who was still waving a knife, police said Wednesday evening, after questioning him.

The attacker, shot dead at the scene, was identified by the Palestinian Health Ministry as 23-year-old Mouhamed Zaharn from the village of Adick in the West Bank.

She says three Israelis were wounded in the attack, one of them possibly by policemen who were shooting at the assailants.

Many of the Palestinians killed have been alleged attackers, while others have been shot dead by Israeli security forces during protests or clashes.

Also Wednesday, Israel’s Shin Bet intelligence agency said it arrested 25 Palestinians linked to the terrorist group Hamas for planning bombings and suicide attacks against Israelis.

Shortly afterward another Palestinian man tried to attack Israeli forces near Hebron with a screwdriver.

Israel’s Magen David Adom ambulance service reported that since violence began on September 13, 24 Israelis have been killed in attacks, and an additional 266 have been injured. Palestinians say it stems from frustration at almost five decades of Israeli military rule.

The four separate incidents came as revelers were gathering in the West Bank city of Bethlehem for Christmas celebrations, festivities that are being dampened by the latest outburst of violence. The firebombing killed a Palestinian couple and their 18-month-old son. With Israel hinting indictments in the Duma arson may be imminent, some of the suspects’ lawyers have accused Shin Bet state security investigators of trying to exact confessions with torture – an allegation they may use to challenge criminal charges in court.

Among drivers for the bloodshed have been access to a contested Jerusalem shrine, stalled peace talks and a July 31 arson by suspected Jewish zealots that killed a Palestinian toddler and his parents, an incident which Israeli authorities have not yet cleared up. A police spokesman told a local media outlet the video is being investigated.