West Bank24 September, 20263 min read
Palestinian Driver Mahmoud Muhammad Mahmoud Suleiman Shot Dead After Vehicle Attack Injures Neriya Leiter
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Neria Leiter, son of Israel's ambassador to U.S., severely injured at a West Bank checkpoint. Palestinian driver rammed the checkpoint; reports say the attacker died at the scene.
9 outlets told this the same way.
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Checkpoint attack and surgery
A vehicle attack at a checkpoint on Route 443 in the occupied West Bank critically wounded Neriya Leiter, the son of Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Yechiel Leiter, and Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem later said Neriya underwent a complex brain operation that lasted several hours.
Prof. Alexander Yuskovich of Shaare Zedek told reporters that “After a series of tests and a series of surgeries, we can say that his condition is stable,” while also saying “His condition is still serious and his life is still in danger, but we are full of hope.”
CNN en Español said regional authorities reported that Neria Leiter, a reserve soldier guarding a checkpoint near the settlement of Beit Horon, was urgently transported to a hospital in Jerusalem on Wednesday afternoon.
CNN en Español added that the Palestinian driver, Mahmoud Muhammad Mahmoud Suleiman, was shot dead at the scene, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, and Hamas praised the attack as a “natural response” to Israeli actions in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Family, prayers, and statements
Yechiel Leiter said he went directly to Shaare Zedek Medical Center after arriving in Israel on Thursday, and he told reporters, “Thank God, the doctors managed to stabilize Neriya’s condition. His life is still in danger.”
Leiter also said, “When I boarded the plane yesterday in New York, while preparing the prime minister’s visit to the UN, I was afraid I might land without hope,” and he described the moment as reopening “the wounds of another family tragedy” after his son Maj. (res.) Moshe Yedidya Leiter was killed in Gaza in November 2023.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted support for the Leiter family, writing, “My wife Sara and I, together with all the people of Israel, pray for a miracle,” and Diario Las Américas reported that Netanyahu’s office said he visited Neria Leiter at the hospital before traveling to the United States.
Israel Defense Forces statements framed the incident as an attack on Israeli forces, and CNN en Español quoted Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir saying, “The IDF is in a state of maximum alert, deployed and prepared with military reinforcements in all sectors, even during the fast.”
West Bank tensions and next steps
The attack near Beit Horon unfolded as Israeli authorities and Palestinian officials described a wider pattern of violence in the West Bank, with CNN en Español saying it came a few days after a shooting on the eve of Yom Kippur and after Netanel Shukrun was shot dead at a spring in the West Bank on Sunday morning. CNN en Español reported that the Israel Defense Forces arrested the alleged gunman at a hospital near Ramallah, and it said National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir requested the death penalty in that case, citing a new law that applies capital punishment to terrorism and nationalist killings.
El Mundo said doctors at Shaare Zedek Hospital were fighting for Neria Leiter’s life in critical condition after the vehicle-ramming attack, and it reported that the attacker was shot dead after crashing into the police car in which the Israeli was serving as a reservist near the Beit Horon settlement. JNS.org said Yechiel Leiter thanked the Israel Defense Forces and the medical team at Shaare Zedek, and it quoted the ambassador writing, “I believe in the power of prayer, and I believe that when the people of Israel unite, miracles happen,” as the family awaited further medical updates.