Palestinian Authority Officers Behind Deadly West Bank Shooting and Stabbing
An Israeli security guard was killed Thursday in a stabbing and shooting attack at the Gush Etzion Junction shopping complex in the West Bank. The attackers, two young Palestinian men identified as officers in the Palestinian Authority police force, were shot dead at the scene by an Israeli soldier and an armed civilian. The incident occurred in a tense area near Hebron and comes during a period of heightened violence across the West Bank.
The victim, 22-year-old Shalev Zvuluny from Kiryat Arba, was attacked outside a supermarket by the two assailants, who had reportedly arrived in a stolen vehicle. After stabbing Zvuluny, the attackers took his handgun and opened fire, prompting a quick response from nearby armed individuals. Zvuluny was initially listed in critical condition and later pronounced dead by emergency medics.
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The gunmen were named as Mahmoud Abed, 23, from Halhul, and Malik Salem, 23, from Tulkarm. Both had recently completed their training with the Palestinian Authority police and had no prior security records, according to an Israeli defense official.
Following the attack, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops sealed off the nearby town of Halhul and conducted searches in the area. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir visited the scene and met with senior commanders. “The chief of staff noted that this was a grave terror incident and sent condolences to the family of the murdered man,” the military said in a statement. Zamir instructed forces to maintain “intense counterterrorism activity.”
The attack occurred hours after a separate incident in the northern West Bank, where a soldier was stabbed near Jenin.
