Terrorist killed after infiltrating settlement

Terror attack thwarted: A Palestinian armed with a knife infiltrated the Jewish community of Beit Hagai in South Mount Hebron early Friday and confronted two members of the settlement's emergency squad. He was shot to death shortly after lightly injuring one of them in the leg. 

According to residents, the terrorist was less than 20 years old.

Beit Hagai resident Uziel Shientof, who was lightly injured after confronting the terrorist, told Ynet, "We had a big miracle here." He said that the assailant had tried to attack him and his friend with a knife. He added that the terrorist did not say a thing the entire time before he was shot dead.

South Mount Hebron Regional Council head Zviki Bar Hai told Ynet that the terroristswalked around the community but did not enter any of the houses. Israel Defense Forces soldiers are searching the area to ensure that no other terrorists have infiltrated the settlement.

The community's spokesman, Yair Lior, told Ynet of the chain of events: "Two members of our emergency squad who were walking in the community saw the terrorist in the early morning hours. One of them came up against him and struggled with him. He had a stoppage in his gun, and the other man neutralized the terrorist and killed him.

"We have experienced a huge miracle, thanks to the Torah and grace taking place in this community."

A senior Judea and Samaria Division official told Ynet that the quick action of the members of the emergency squad prevented a disaster. He praised the residents who took on and killed the terrorist.

The Beit Hagai settlement was established in the 1980s south of Hebron and Kiryat Arba. Some 85 families live in the community, which was named after three yeshiva students murdered in 1980 in a terror attack in Hebron.

The place is not surrounded by a fence due to the residents' objection, but there are other security measures around it.

"The fences are not the problem. The problem is simple, starting with the previous Israeli government's policy, and God forbid, continuing with the current government," said Lior, calling for an iron fist against terror.  

Government policy slammed

The Yesha Council said in response to the thwarted attack that plans to minimize security and other security components in the settlements should be cut immediately. "This morning's attack proves the importance of the settlement protection system, thanks to which, thanks to the community's emergency squad, a great disaster was thwarted."

The Council went on to say in a statement that "the pressure put on Israel to establish a state for the terror organizations encourages the terrorists. When the Iranian nuclear threat and the pioneering settlement project in Judea and Samaria are compared in an immoral way, the terror organizations get a tailwind for their criminal acts."

The Binyamin and Samaria settlers' committee said following the thwarted attack, "The series of terroristic incidents in the past few days are a direct result of Defense Minister Ehud Barak's roadblock removal policy." They called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the "security lawlessness."

2 weeks ago: Youth killed in Bat Ayin

This was the second time in the past month that a lone Palestinian enters a settlement to carry out an attack. Two weeks ago, 13-year-old Shlomo Nativ of the West Bank settlement of Beit Ayin was killed by a Palestinian terrorist who entered the community and began attacking residents with an axe.

Nativ was seriously hurt in the attack and a Magen David Adom crew fought for his life, but he eventually died of his wounds. A seven-year-old child was lightly injured in the incident. The Israel Defense Forces searched for the assailant, but failed to catch him to this day.

Several days later, Palestinians from a nearby village said that a group of armed settlers from Bat Ayin had attacked them and damaged their homes. There were no injuries in the incident.

Bat Ayin residents rejected the report. "This is complete nonsense. Nothing of the kind took place," said the community's security officer, Yaakov Morag.