The Palestinian terrorist suspected of killing an 18-year-old female Israeli soldier and wounding three others earlier this month was taken out Wednesday night when he opened fire on security guards outside a Jewish settlement in the West Bank.
The gunman had been wanted in the deadly October 8 attack that killed Sgt. Noa Lazar at a checkpoint near Jerusalem when he resurfaced at the entrance to Ma’aleh Adumim and opened fire, wounding one guard before he was killed.
“We had a miracle and a lot of luck this evening; two highly experienced security guards that were at the checkpoint at the city entrance neutralized the terrorist immediately, with bravery and a lot of resourcefulness and without fear,” Ma’aleh Adumim Mayor Benny Kashriel told the Jerusalem Post. “Ma’aleh Adumim will not surrender to terrorism.”
WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO
BREAKING: Palestinian terrorist came to carry out a shooting attack in Maale Adumim and was eliminated by the security guards on the spot. pic.twitter.com/RYER7y1p3m
— Hananya Naftali (@HananyaNaftali) October 19, 2022
The terrorist was identified as Udai Tamimi, of the refugee camp of Shuafat in East Jerusalem. The IDF had been searching for him, but other residents of Shufat reportedly shaved their heads like his to make it more difficult for authorities to identify him.
United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Akiva Skolnick witnessed the incident Wednesday and described it to reporters.
“We were told at the scene that a terrorist opened fire at a security guard who miraculously was only injured in his hand. I treated him at the scene and then he was transported to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem in light condition and fully conscious,” he said. “The terrorist was pronounced dead at the scene.”
Only days after Lazar’s murder, IDF soldier Ido Baruch was murdered in a drive-by shooting near the town of Shavei Shomron in Samaria.
Meanwhile, U.S. Democrats have been attempting to influence upcoming Israeli elections in hopes of barring the ascension of a powerful right-wing leader who may hold the key to the upcoming Israeli election.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, whose Otzma Yehudit party has been projected to win between 14 and 17 seats in the Knesset, which would give him a chance to become the kingmaker in the Israeli government, was attacked by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA). Menendez reportedly warned Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu that if he included Gvir in a new government he might run, it could harm U.S.-Israel relations.
According to Axios, “People who were in the room saw how pissed off Bibi got” at Menendez’s comments.
Sherman tweeted, “As #Israel heads towards another election in November, I urge Israeli political leaders from all sides of the political spectrum to ostracize extremists like Itamar Ben-Gvir whose outrageous views run contrary to Israel’s core principles of a democratic and Jewish state.”
As #Israel heads towards another election in November, I urge Israeli political leaders from all sides of the political spectrum to ostracize extremists like Itamar Ben-Gvir whose outrageous views run contrary to Israel's core principles of a democratic and Jewish state. (1/2)
— Congressman Brad Sherman (@BradSherman) October 3, 2022
Last week, Ben-Gvir told Yishai Fleisher, the spokesman for the Jewish community of Hebron, that the reason for his running for the Knesset was to save Israel, saying Jews were afraid to walk at night, afraid to be Jewish, afraid to go to the Western Wall in Jerusalem, not just afraid in Judea and Samaria, but also in the rest of Israel.
“We have to watch out for our own security, and not count on other people,” Gvir said pointedly, noting that during the Holocaust Jews were waiting for others to blow up the railways to Auschwitz but it didn’t happen.