Father of Six Killed in West Bank Terror Attack; IDF Pursues Gunman

A father of six, Natanel Shokrun, was killed in a terror attack Sunday afternoon near the settlement of Neve Tzuf in the Binyamin region. He was found unconscious in his vehicle near the Ein Riyha spring and later pronounced dead at Beilinson Hospital. His son, who was with him in the car, was unharmed.

The assailant, identified as a 37-year-old Hamas operative from the village of Biddu near Ramallah, was wounded by an Israeli sniper but managed to escape. He was later apprehended by special forces at a hospital in Ramallah, following intelligence from the Shin Bet. The IDF stated that Duvdevan unit soldiers, in coordination with the Shin Bet, detained the terrorist at the hospital.

Security officials believe the attacker acted alone. The IDF's Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, ordered the demolition of the terrorist's home and a continued search for accomplices. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the death penalty for the attacker, citing a law passed by his party.

An initial investigation revealed the terrorist drove to the spring and opened fire on Shokrun's vehicle. A nearby soldier in an armored vehicle fired at the attacker but missed. The gunman fled on foot, prompting the deployment of special forces, including the Duvdevan unit, and Israeli Air Force helicopters to the area. Checkpoints were established, and security forces feared the armed terrorist might carry out another attack. Surveillance cameras had identified his red Mitsubishi Outlander.

In a separate incident shortly after, soldiers from the 890th Battalion of the Paratroopers Brigade eliminated one terrorist and apprehended another who attempted a car-ramming attack near the Ganim settlement in the Menashe brigade's area of responsibility. No Israeli soldiers were injured in this second incident.

Leaders of the Binyamin and Samaria regional councils, Yisrael Gantz and Yossi Dagan respectively, vowed that residents would not be driven from their homes and called for intensified security operations, including house-to-house searches and the confiscation of illegal weapons. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed condolences to the family and vowed that "not a single terrorist will remain unpunished." Defense Minister Yoav Gallant praised the soldiers who thwarted the second attack.