Saturday, December 17, 2005

Israeli man killed in West Bank shooting attack

From Haaretz 19:01 16/12/2005 By Jonathan Lis, Haaretz Correspondent, Haaretz Service and News Agencies . . .

Palestinian gunmen in the West Bank opened fire in the southern Hebron Hills early Friday afternoon, killing an Israeli man and lightly wounding two other women.The victim of the attack has been named as Yossi Shok, 35, from the West Bank settlement of Beit Hagai.Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a Fatah-linked militant group, claimed joint responsibility for the attack.

. . .the gunmen shot at Shok's vehicle near Beit Hagai, not far from the regional IDF headquarters.

'The murderer is sitting in Sharon's bureau'
Beit Hagai spokesman Yair Lior said he saw an IDF bulldozer removing a military checkpoint from the location of the attack, which took place just hours later. "The murderer is sitting in Sharon's bureau," Lior said in response to the shooting. "Whomever votes for Kadima is voting for a gang of murderers who have no respect for the spilling of the blood of Israel. They are doing to us what Joseph's brothers did to him - 'Go away, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let not our hands be on him'... Sharon, Mofaz and the chief of staff are responsible for this murder. The blood is on their hands. I and others warned the military echelon, painting a precise scenario of such an event. We will not be broken by the Arabs. The problem is the Israeli government. A government in which criminals and murderers sit, and I invite anyone who wants to bring me to trial for this statement to do so," he added.

Security forces closed off the southern Hebron Hills area after the attack and were searching for the gunmen, Israel Radio reported. It said a militant cell specializing in shooting attacks is known to operate in the area where the shooting took place. . . .The attack was carried out not far from an IDF regional brigade headquarters, indicating that the perpetrators of the attack meticulously planned it.

Two months ago three Israelis were killed and three others were wounded in the area after Palestinians fired at a hitchhikers station.

Nine months ago four soldiers were wounded in the area by shots fired at them from a passing car.

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