The Israeli security forces have eliminated two members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas who had been wanted for allegedly killing three Israeli women in the West Bank of the River Jordan, the Israel Defense Forces said on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th May, 2023) The Israeli security forces have eliminated two members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas who had been wanted for allegedly killing three Israeli women in the West Bank of the River Jordan, the Israel Defense Forces said on Thursday.
In April, Lucy, Maia and Rina Dee, a mother and her two daughters, were fatally injured in an armed attack in the West Bank. The three victims were dual citizens of Israel and the United Kingdom. UK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly expressed their condolences in regard to the tragedy.
"This morning, in a joint operation led by the ISA (Israel Security Authority) with IDF (Israel Defense Forces) & Yamam (Israel's counter-terrorism unit) forces, counterterrorism activities were conducted. Using precise intelligence from the Shin Bet (internal security service), we were able to neutralize the terrorists who committed the horrific attack," the Israel Defense Forces said on Twitter.
During the operation, a senior operative who allegedly assisted the two Hamas members was also neutralized, the statement read.
The headquarters of the perpetrators was located in the city of Nablus in the West Bank, the Israel Defense Forces said, adding that the Israeli military had discovered two M16 rifles and a Kalashnikov rifle there.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant thanked the security forces for their successful operation.
"I commend our security forces for neutralizing the terrorists who conducted the terror attack," Gallant twitted on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Health Ministry reported the deaths of three Palestinians, saying that they had been killed during an Israeli raid in the city of Nablus.
Relations between Palestine and Israel have been adversarial since the latter's founding in 1948. Palestinians seek diplomatic recognition of their independent state on the territories of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which is partially occupied by Israel, and the Gaza Strip. The Israeli government refuses to recognize Palestine as an independent political and diplomatic entity and builds settlements in the occupied areas despite objections from the United Nations.
The already tense bilateral relations were additionally complicated after Israeli security forces stormed the Al-Aqsa mosque, one of the holiest Muslim sites, on April 5, arresting hundreds of worshipers, which provoked rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip and the territory of Lebanon.
