Two killed in ramming and stabbing attack in northern Israel

Police say attacker came from West Bank village of Qabatiya

Israeli security forces at the scene. Reuters

An elderly man and a young woman ⁠were ​killed in a ​stabbing and ‌ramming attack by ​a Palestinian in northern Israel, Israeli authorities ‌said on Friday.

The attack came a day after an Israeli military reservist dressed in civilian clothes rammed his vehicle into a man praying by the side of a road in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli police said a 68-year-old man died after being run over in the city of Beit Shean. "Later, a young woman was stabbed near Road 71, and the suspect was ultimately engaged with gunfire near Maonot Junction in Afula following intervention by a civilian bystander," a police statement said.

Israel's emergency service provider Magen David Adom said that a 16-year-old boy was slightly injured when he was "hit by a vehicle". The alleged attacker, identified as a resident of the West Bank village of Qabatiya, was taken to hospital, police said.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz instructed the army to act “forcefully and immediately” against the village, according to a statement from his office. Israel demolishes the homes of Palestinians involved in attacks, even if they are killed. The Israeli military said the attacker had "infiltrated into Israeli territory several days ago".

At least 38 people, including two foreigners, have been killed inside Israel in attacks by Palestinians since the war in Gaza began in October 2023, according to official Israeli figures. During the same period, Israeli troops and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank, including many militants as well as dozens of civilians, according figures from the Palestinian Health Ministry.

On Thursday, an Israeli reservist soldier rammed his vehicle into a Palestinian ⁠man as he prayed on ​a roadside in the occupied ​West Bank, after earlier firing shots in the area, the Israeli ​military said.

Video of the incident, which was circulated online and aired on Palestinian television, shows a man in civilian clothing with a gun slung over his shoulder driving an ⁠off-road vehicle into a man praying ​on the side ‍of the road.

"Footage was received of an armed individual running over a Palestinian individual," the Israeli military said in a statement. The military said the reservist ‍acted "in severe violation of his authority" and that his military service had been terminated and his ⁠weapon confiscated, the military said.

Israeli media reported that he was being held under house arrest. The Palestinian man underwent checks at a hospital and was allowed to go home.

This year ​was one of the most violent on record ⁠for ‌Israeli civilian attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, according ⁠to UN data that shows more than ⁠750 injuries.