by Jerusalem Post Staff
10 injured, two of them police officers • Shooters may have been connected to ISIS
Two Israelis, a man and a woman, were killed and six, including two Israel Police officers, were injured in a shooting attack in Hadera on Sunday evening.
The Israeli defense establishment believes the attackers may have been connected to ISIS and one had reportedly been previously arrested for trying to join the terrorist group.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has reportedly arrived at the scene where the shooters, two Arab-Israeli men from Umm el-Fahm, were shot dead by undercover officers from Border Police's Counterterrorism Unit, who were eating at a restaurant near the scene of the attack.
Shin Bet director Ronen Bar, Israel Police chief Kobi Shabtai and Public Security Minister Omer Bar Lev are at the scene of the attack as police helicopters are scanning the area to rule out the possibility that more attackers connected to the attack are on the streets of Hadera.
Bar Lev, Shabtai and Bar are holding a situational assessment from Hadera with IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi and Defense Minister Benny Gantz.
The attackers reportedly waited for a bus to drive by before shooting towards civilians.
Two Israeli men in their 20s were seriously injured in the attack, while a 45-year-old man and an Israeli woman in her 20s were lightly injured. They were rushed to Hillel Yafe Medical Center in the city for further treatment.
At the scene of the shooting, two additional civilians are being treated by paramedics. Five passersby were also evacuated to Hillel Yafe Medical Center after showing signs of post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD).
Israel Police chief Kobi Shabtai at the scene of a dedly attack in Hadera, March 27, 2022. (credit: ISRAEL POLICE)Police forces are continuing a scan of the area to ensure no other civilians were injured in the shooting. Security forces have reportedly arrested family members of the attackers in Umm el-Fahm, minutes after the attack took place in Hadera.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz thanked the security forces that shot the terrorists after receiving a briefing of the attack and sent his condolences to the victims' families and a speedy recovery to the injured.
"The IDF and Israel's security forces are ready to restore quiet and security to Israel's citizens, wherever they may be," he said, "we will fight terror and terrorists."
Ra'am head Mansour Abbas condemned the attack: "This disgusting crime was ISIS-inspired and does not reflect the Israeli-Arab population, which seeks to live in respect and in accordance with the law, a life that honors the living and coexistence between Arabs and Jews.
Abbas sent his condolences to the victims' families and a quick recovery to the injured.
He also called on Arab politicians and community leaders to fight to root violence out in their communities.
The attack comes as Israel is hosting a major summit in the Negev with foreign ministers from the United States, Bahrain, Morocco, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.
The foreign ministers of all nations involved in the Negev Summit have condemned the attack, the Foreign Ministry said. "The terror attack is yet another attempt by violent extremists to terrorize Israelis and damage the Israeli fabric of life," Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said.
The attack also comes less than a week after the Beersheba terror attack, in which four Israelis were killed by a Bedouin-Israeli shooter who was killed by a civilian at the scene.
Palestinian terrorist groups have called in recent weeks for increased attacks on Israelis ahead of the month of Ramadan, which starts this coming Saturday.
Maariv contributed to this report.
Jerusalem Post Staff
Source: https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-702476
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