Israeli security forces and emergency personnel work at the scene of what an initial report from the Israeli army said was a shooting attack, near the Israeli settlement of Ofra, in the occupied West Bank December 9, 2018. REUTERS/Ammar Awad Seven Israelis were wounded in a Palestinian terrorist attack on Sunday night close to the Ofra community in Judea and Samaria.
At around 9:30 p.m., a Palestinian from a moving vehicle opened fire on a crowd of Israelis at a bus stop. Among those shot was Shira Ish-Ran, 21, who was 30 weeks pregnant.
The gunshot wounds forced doctors to perform an emergency Caesarean section; the baby’s condition has deteriorated after being first labeled as “stable.” Ish-Ran’s condition is improving, although she is still in serious condition.
The other wounded individuals, including Ish-Ran’s husband, Amichai, are expected to survive their injuries.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the attack as “monstrous.”
“We are all praying for the recovery of the wounded in the terrible terror attack yesterday and support the doctors who are fighting for the baby’s life,” Netanyahu said. “I think it’s useless to expect condemnation from the Palestinian Authority. They only contribute to the incitement.”
U.S. Middle East Envoy Jason Greenblatt and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley tweeted:
https://twitter.com/jdgreenblatt45/status/1071894330451877893
These payments need to stop. https://t.co/UH8I1W0C4W
— Archive: Ambassador Nikki Haley (@AmbNikkiHaley) December 9, 2018
Hamas spokesman Abdelatif al-Qanou praised the terror attack as “heroic” as a means of “resisting the Zionist occupation and its settlers” in a Facebook post.
“It proves that any attempt to condemn the Palestinian resistance will fail in the face of the desire and valiance of our Palestinian people,” al-Qanou wrote.
The investigation to capture the terrorist remains ongoing.
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