Child gravely hurt in shooting

A 10-year-old child sustained serious head wounds and a 44-year-old man was lightly injured after the vehicle they were traveling in was attacked by palestinian terrorists on Highway 60, north of Jerusalem, near the settlement of Ateret. The child's father was also in the car but was not hurt, as was previously reported. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, Fatah’s military wing, said it was behind the shooting attack, stating it "came in response to last Thursday’s massacre in Shfaram." This attack marks the first in a series of responses to the Shfaram attack, a member of the terror group said. An initial investigation revealed shots were fired at a family traveling in a vehicle from Jerusalem to Ateret. The terrorists, who were apparently traveling by car as well, targeted the Israeli family near the British Police junction. The driver, who sustained light shrapnel wounds, continued on his way towards Ateret despite his injuries, where he was met by ambulances and troops. The driver, Naftali Ben Eliyahu, 44, told Ynet he suddenly realized the vehicle ahead of his car had its rear windshield missing. “Suddenly a weapon appeared, I think it was a Kalashnikov,” he said. “Even before we realized what was going on, they fired at us, many shots.” The IDF received a report about the shooting around 11 a.m. Sunday and has dispatched large forces to the area, as well as a helicopter. The wounded child was taken to Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital by chopper, while troops initiated a pursuit for the shooters. 'I found child with bullet in his head' Magen David Adom paramedic Jaber Azat, who arrived at the attack scene, told Ynet: “I was in the middle of a regular shift…suddenly we received a report from Jerusalem MDA regarding a shooting attack near Ateret. I stopped everything else and sped to Ateret.” “I arrived within a few minutes and found a 10-year-old kid with a bullet in his head and unconscious, Azat said. “We started treating him immediately.” The paramedic said the child’s father remained by his son’s side at all times and told Azat the family was traveling to visit relatives when terrorists opened fire at their car. Colonel Miki Edelstein, commander of the Binyamin Brigade, which operates in the greater Ramallah area, said the shooting attack north of Jerusalem was one of the most complex attacks the West Bank has seen as of late, stating the concessions to the Palestinians must be reevaluated as a result. “The attack was planned. Following the shooting the terrorists set their car on fire,” he said. “A gas tank was left inside their vehicle so security forces would be hurt from the explosion.” Meanwhile, Palestinian sources in Ramallah said the IDF closed two roadblocks in the area of the attack following the shooting. The two checkpoints were reportedly removed by the army recently, but have now been set up again. According to the sources, troops were scouring the area in search of the terrorists. Hamas promised revenge Meanwhile, settler leader Pinchas Wallerstein, who was making his way to the attack scene, said: “It appears our blood is very cheap.” Israeli citizens and West Bank and Gaza settlers are again paying the price of goodwill “gestures” to the Palestinians, the Yesha Council charged later Sunday. “The fact that roadblocks placed in the area were removed allowed the terrorists to carry out the attack. Apparently the blood of Yesha settlers is cheap in the eyes of the government, and therefore ‘experiments’ with their security are allowed,” the Council said Notably, Hamas has threatened to respond to the terror attack in Shfaram, where four Arab-Israelis were killed by a Jewish radical, stating the "massacre" would not pass without punishment. “Whatever harms our brothers in the territories that have been occupied since 1948 harms us, because what is painful to them is painful to us, “ the terror group said in a statement. -Shani Mizrachi contributed to this report

Child gravely hurt in shooting

Palestinians open fire at Israeli vehicle traveling on Highway 60 north of Jerusalem, near West Bank settlement; 10-year-old child sustains serious head wounds. Al-Aqsa Brigades: Shooting response to Shfaram attack