Hundreds of Jewish pilgrims who arrived early Thursday morning in Nablus to worship at Joseph's Tomb came under attack. The worshipers came to the compound in about 40 buses under Israel Defense Forces security, and during the prayer service disturbances developed in the area that included shooting at the forces, throwing explosive devices, and throwing stones and Molotov cocktails.
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The soldiers returned fire and reported that they detected injuries to a number of the terrorist attackers. There were no casualties among the worshipers or the security forces.
The Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that Badr al-Masri, 19, was killed in the exchange of fire, and that three other Palestinians were wounded, including two who are in serious condition. Al-Masri is a terrorist associated with the terrorist organization Lions' Den, which said that he was "killed while fighting against the occupation forces and the settlers who came to Joseph's tomb."
Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai participated in securing the entrance of the tomb for the worshipers, and personally escorted to the tomb the family of 17-year-old Moishi Kleinerman, who has been missing for more than 480 days since he left for Meron and disappeared.