BICOM

A 21-year-old Israeli woman was killed yesterday after being stabbed by a Palestinian man in the West Bank. It was one of several attacks on Israeli civilians over the weekend.

Yesterday’s deadly stabbing took place at the Gush Etzion junction, which has seen several serious attacks during the past few weeks. 21-year-old Hadar Buchris was waiting for a bus when 34-year-old Atzam Tuabata from nearby Beit Fajar stabbed her in the head and chest. Buchris was evacuated to a Jerusalem hospital but could not be revived. Tuabata was shot dead at the scene by soldiers from the Kfir infantry brigade. The IDF this morning has prevented Palestinians from entering Gush Etzion, given the frequency of attacks there, including a shooting on Thursday which killed three people.

Yesterday morning, two additional stabbing attacks were thwarted in the West Bank. A 16-year-old Palestinian female attempted to stab an Israeli near Itamar and was run over by a civilian before being shot dead. Meanwhile, a Palestinian taxi driver attempted to run over Israelis at the Kfar Adumim junction and then exited his vehicle to stab Israelis. He was also shot dead at the scene.

On Saturday, four Israelis were moderately injured, including a 13-year-old girl in the southern town of Kiryat Gat, after an 18-year-old Palestinian attacked them with a knife. The assailant fled the scene, prompting a city-wide hunt by around 250 police and Border Policemen. The attacker was eventually found after five hours in the storage room of a nearby local residence, still in possession of the weapon. He was identified as Muhammad Shaker al-Tarda, an illegal worker from the village of Yatta near Hebron.

Prior to Thursday, there had been a temporary lull in the violence, which has now killed 20 Israelis since the start of October. Although Jerusalem and the southern West Bank near Hebron have been particular flashpoints, attacks have also taken place in central Israeli cities including Tel Aviv, Ra’anana, Netanya and Beit Shemesh.