A Palestinian terror shooting attack on an Israeli bus in the West Bank killed a child Thursday morning and left three others wounded, Israeli emergency services said.
The Israeli military responded by sending its forces in pursuit of the gunman and had set up roadblocks and encircled an area near the Palestinian city of Bethlehem, Reuters reports.The Palestinian terrorist responsible later turned himself in to authorities, the Israel Defense Forces said in a brief statement.The child victim was around the age of 12 and was critically hurt and died later in a Jerusalem hospital, medics said.He was later named as Yehoshua Aharon Tuvia Simha of the Beitar Illit settlement — from where the bus had departed.
Israeli security forces work at the scene of a shooting attack on a bus near the West Bank town of Beit Jala, early Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Three others were hurt in the shooting: a woman who suffered moderate wounds and two other people who were lightly hurt, the Times of Israel reports.
The bus was shot up by the gunman at a junction by the Palestinian town of al-Khader, the Israel Defense Forces said, before proceeding with the wounded to the Tunnels Checkpoint.
The IDF, Shin Bet, and police said he did so amid their “exertion of military pressure in the area” — including by encircling Bethlehem.
The terror suspect was named as Ezz Aldin Malluh from the town of Beit Awwa near Hebron.
MDA Spokesperson: At 23:36, a report was received about a shooting at a bus on Route 60 near Beit Jala. MDA EMTs and paramedics treated and evacuated two injured to Hadassah Ein Kerem: a 12-year-old child in serious condition and a 40-year-old woman in mild condition pic.twitter.com/53fUs2Vn4k
— Magen David Adom (@Mdais) December 11, 2024
President Isaac Herzog of Israel said in a statement on X on Thursday that the victim Tuvia had been returning from an unspecified family celebration when he was shot.
“I wish to console and embrace his family and friends during this deeply painful and sorrowful time for the people of Israel,” Herzog said in a statement.
“I send strength to the residents of Gush Etzion during their difficult hour, as well as to the IDF soldiers and security forces who operate on various fronts under immense pressure. I trust that the security forces will apprehend the despicable terrorist.”
