Four wounded in shooting attack near Hebron, terrorists eliminated after pursuit

Four people were wounded in a shooting attack Friday morning near Yehuda Junction, southeast of Hebron. Israel's Magen David Adom emergency service said two were seriously wounded and two were lightly wounded. IDF troops rushed to the scene and killed the two terrorists following a brief pursuit as they attempted to flee. Roadblocks were set up in the area.

A medical professional well known in the area recorded the shooting and was heard shouting: "The terrorist keeps firing. There are ongoing exchanges of fire between the terrorist and our forces. We can't evacuate the wounded! There's been active gunfire for more than 20 minutes!"

Soldiers at the scene during the attack opened fire on the terrorists, who fled but were later killed nearby. Israeli forces imposed a cordon around several villages in the area. Magen David Adom medics and paramedics were providing medical treatment to the wounded at the scene.

The IDF raised its alert level twice over the past month: first around Oct. 7 and again last weekend amid concerns about an escalation ahead of the elections.

On Thursday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said that, based on intelligence in Israel's possession, hostile groups intended to attack Israel and carry out terrorist attacks "on the eve of the elections or during them — to influence the results."

He sharply criticized his opponents in the opposition's anti-Netanyahu bloc, who have accused him and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of ulterior motives and of conducting a fear campaign aimed at inflaming tensions ahead of Tuesday's elections.

"Any attack on Israel and any future terrorist attacks, should they unfortunately occur, will be blamed on Yair Lapid, Naftali Bennett, Yair Golan and their opposition colleagues, who never stop attacking the prime minister and me and questioning our judgment in issuing warnings and alerts," Katz said.

Katz's statement came after opposition leader Yair Lapid addressed reports Thursday of a possible resumption of fighting with Iran. Speaking to Kan public radio, Lapid said: "Based on the information I have, there is no reason to attack there or anywhere else before the elections. These are attempts to inflame tensions, and it won't help him (Netanyahu) in the elections either, so I don't understand why he's doing it."