Security forces responded to reports that terrorists shot at a Jewish driver in Samaria on Wednesday night, the Israel Defense Forces confirmed.
“A report was received of a shooting incident near Elon Moreh in the Samaria Brigade [deployment area],” the military said in a statement, adding: “The details are under review.”
There were no casualties in the shooting, which took place between the Israeli communities of Elon Moreh and Itamar, located near the large Palestinian city of Nablus (Shechem).
According to the Hatzalah Judea and Samaria rescue group, one driver reported being shot at from roadside bushes. Army Radio reported that several suspects fled the scene. The military launched a manhunt.
“This is a serious incident in which shots were fired at an Itamar resident who was traveling between Elon Moreh and Itamar,” Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan said in a statement shared by his office.
“The resident spotted a burning vehicle on the side of the road, and when he went to investigate, shots were heard, apparently directed at him,” said Dagan. “Security forces on the scene are examining two possibilities: an attempted terror attack, or a feud between criminal groups within one of the nearby Arab villages.
“Either way, the fact that illegal weapons are circulating unhindered in Palestinian villages—whether in the hands of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Fatah or in the hands of criminal elements—is inconceivable and cannot continue,” added the local leader.
On Sunday night, IDF soldiers neutralized a Palestinian terrorist who opened fire at troops stationed at a checkpoint in northern Samaria.
The terrorist arrived by car at the Homesh checkpoint, located near the eponymous Jewish community north of Nablus (Shechem), and shot at the soldiers.
Palestinian terrorists targeted Israeli Jews in Judea and Samaria at least 6,343 times in 2024, according to figures published by the Rescuers Without Borders (Hatzalah Judea and Samaria) NGO on Feb. 17.
The figures, which were cross-checked against official data from Israel’s security services, included 179 instances of terrorist shootings. Twenty-seven Israelis were murdered in Judea and Samaria in 2024, and more than 300 others were wounded, the group said in its annual report.
Israeli security officials are aware that a “more intense front” could open in Judea and Samaria and are stepping up counter-terror operations in the area, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on March 19.
