Another wave of terrorism attacked Israel on Tuesday night resulting in the death of five people including Yaakov Shalom, the father of five children; Rabbi Avishai Yehezkel, the father of a two-year-old; Sergeant Amir Khoury, a Christian Arab policeman who responded to the incident; and two Ukrainian nationals.
CBN News reported this was the third major terror attack that happened within eight days in Israel. According to reports, a 27-year-old Palestinian gunman named Diaa Hamarsheh, from the West Bank village of Ya'bad, was riding a motorcycle when he fired in the crowded central Israeli city of Bnei Brak. Israeli police said they managed to shoot the terrorist dead to end the shooting rampage.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett set an emergency meeting with top security officials to address the wave of terror attacks. In a nationwide address, he assured, "As in other waves, we will prevail."
"Citizens of Israel, these are difficult days," said Bennett. "Every few years the State of Israel deals with a wave of terrorism. After a period of quiet, there is a violent eruption by those who want to destroy us...we face a challenging period. We have experience in dealing with terrorism, from the very beginning of Zionism. They did not break us then and they will not break us now."
The attacks happened before the Muslim month of Ramadan when often rise in terror attacks was observed. Based on the report, the attacks came near the anniversary of the last year's war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. However, no Palestinian terror groups acknowledge the responsibility for Tuesday's shooting.
The Islamist militant group Hamas commend the attack as a "heroic operation," but stopped short of claiming responsibility. A Palestinian man shared candies to celebrate the bloodshed according to a Twitter post of a freelance photographer.
ABC News reported Israeli forces arrested five Palestinians for being allegedly involved in the shooting incident. According to the Israeli Security Agency Intelligence, they operated in different locations such as Judea and Samaria. The military said the suspects were currently being questioned.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denounced the attack, saying the killing of civilians would only worsen furtherly the situation and instability that they all strive to achieve more than ever as the month of Ramadan, and Christian and Jewish holidays were approaching.
He said the violence "confirms that permanent, comprehensive and just peace is the shortest way to provide security and stability for the Palestinian and Israeli peoples."
It was marked as the second mass shooting in days in Israel. Last Sunday, two Palestinian Arabs were killed and 4 wounded in the city of Hadera, about 30 miles north of Tel Aviv. The Islamic State was held responsible for that shooting.
Meanwhile, the pro-Israel organization Im Tirtzu held 20 different rallies across Israel to protest the rise of Arab terrorism, Israel News reported. According to the organization, the demonstrations were meant to strengthen the morale of the citizens and to appeal to the government to strengthen its stance against terrorism.
Director of Projects for Im Tirtzu, Yehuda Sharabany said "We took to the streets because the time has come to take a harsh stance against terrorism and restore deterrence." They were demanding the following three actions: "the immediate cancellation of entry permits from Gaza and the Palestinian Authority ahead of Ramadan; canceling the citizenship of Israeli-Arab terrorists; and demolishing the homes of the Israeli-Arab terrorists who perpetrated the latest attacks."
"Now is the time to act, not to hesitate," said Sharabany.
