Six Israelis hurt, one assailant killed in West Bank attacks

Israeli authorities on Sunday (November 8) released a video showing a Palestinian woman stabbing a security guard at the entrance of a Jewish settlement in the West Bank.

The man, a resident of the Jewish settlement of Emanuel, was stabbed by two assailants when he stopped his auto to shop for groceries in the Palestinian village of Nabi Ilyas.

Since October 1, close to 80 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli military, police, and paramilitary settlers; nearly 2,500 have been injured; and according to Addameer, the main prisoners’ support organization in Palestine, 1,195 have been arrested, including 177 children.

Another Palestinian, from the minority Christian community, was critically hurt by Israeli army fire during a violent demonstration in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, medics said. Her son denied she tried to harm anyone, and that she was on her way to lunch with her sister when she was killed. Hundreds of combat troops guard about 850 Jewish settlers in the center of Hebron, which is also home to tens of thousands of Palestinians. Nine Israelis and one Arab Israeli have also been killed. She eventually died from her injuries, media reports said.

At a cabinet meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu said he will discuss with Obama “possible progress with the Palestinians, or at least stabilising the situation with them, and, of course, strengthening the security of the state of Israel”. Meanwhile, around 4,000 Israelis visited the site as part of a religious pilgrimage, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

Amro says dozens of Israeli settlers have gathered outside the building, celebrating the raid and chanting for Israeli troops to kill the Palestinians.

Four Israeli civilians were wounded, two seriously, in the morning car-ramming attack at the Tapuah Junction in the northern West Bank when the driver accelerated his auto into a crowd waiting at a bus stop.

In addition to stabbings, Palestinians have also carried out shooting attacks and used vehicles to attack Israelis.

The current wave of violence erupted in September amid strife over the al-Aqsa mosque compound in east Jerusalem, as Palestinians charged Israelis are attempting to take over the spot, holy to both Jews and Muslims, and change the status quo that only permits Muslims to pray there. Palestinians say the violence is rooted in a lack of hope for gaining independence after years of failed peace efforts.

The widow of the victim, Ruti Hasno, told the Israeli news site Ynet that “the phenomenon of terrorist turning themselves in to the Palestinian security forces is very problematic”.