Man in Car Opens Fire Near Kokhav Yair, Kills Haim Kalomiti, Wounds Five

Israeli police and emergency responders said a man was killed and five others were wounded in central Israel after a man in a car opened fire at multiple locations near the occupied West Bank, with Magen David Adom reporting that a man aged about 35 died of gunshot wounds.

“At least one man has been killed and five wounded in central Israel, Israeli medics have said, in what police called a suspected “terror attack””

Al Jazeera

The BBC said the alleged attacker was killed by security forces near the town of Kokhav Yair, not far from the occupied West Bank, and police said they had killed the suspect after a brief chase and recovered the weapon and the car used in the attack.

Al Jazeera

The attack began at a gas station near Kokhav Yair, and MDA said five other people across at least three separate scenes were also wounded, including two in serious condition.

CNN later identified the deceased as reservist Master Sergeant Haim Kalomiti, 55, from the town of Tzur Natan, and said Defense Minister Israel Katz stated that Kalomiti “courageously engaged the terrorist who carried out this murderous attack and fell while fulfilling his mission to protect the state and its residents.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a situation assessment following the attack, and the BBC quoted him telling his cabinet, “I praise the rapid-response teams that acted immediately against the terrorists.”

The BBC also reported that far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said, “the law on the death penalty for terrorists also applies to Israeli Arabs,” adding that if the attacker had been captured he would have demanded execution.

Al-Monitor

Hamas praised the attack, with CNN saying it claimed the shootings came as a response to “the occupation’s ongoing aggression against the Gaza Strip” and “assaults that affect our people daily in the West Bank and Jerusalem.”

Police said a second suspect was arrested after the attacker was killed, and the BBC reported that the suspect “made statements suggesting involvement in the attack,” while also saying he tried to attack officers.

In parallel, the Times of Israel described the perpetrator as Omar Yassin and said security forces shot him dead after the shootings, while police later arrested a second man accused of involvement.

Israeli forces carried out additional searches after the shooting rampage, and the BBC said police urged the public to remain vigilant while investigations continued.

The Al Jazeera report said Israeli police called the incident a suspected “terror attack,” and it quoted Magen David Adom describing how medics responded after receiving reports about gunshot casualties at several scenes close to them.

Euronews said residents were instructed to stay at home and children were kept in lockdown at school for at least three hours, and it reported that police later arrested a second person involved who allegedly attempted to stab police with a glass bottle.

The Times of Israel said sirens sounded in Tzur Natan and Tzur Yitzhak warning of terrorist infiltration and calling on residents to barricade themselves at home, and it said the order was lifted some five hours later.

Beyond the immediate manhunt, the BBC reported Ben-Gvir’s push for execution, tying it to a new Israeli law that makes the death penalty the default sentence for Palestinians convicted of deadly terror attacks.