January 17, 2024 | Flash Brief

West Bank Imminent Terrorist Attack Thwarted by Israel

January 17, 2024 | Flash Brief

West Bank Imminent Terrorist Attack Thwarted by Israel

Latest Developments

A West Bank-based Palestinian terrorist squad planning an imminent and large-scale attack on Israelis was thwarted by an Israeli airstrike on January 17. The strike on the West Bank’s Balata camp killed five heavily armed members of a terrorist wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction as they traveled in a car.

The squad leader, Amed Abdullah Abu-Shalal, had been responsible for previous attacks, including a shooting that wounded two people in Jerusalem and a bombing that wounded a soldier. He and his men had received guidance and funding from Iranian sources contacted via liaisons in the Gaza Strip, said the Shin Bet and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Elsewhere in the West Bank, Israeli troops carried out a raid to detain wanted terrorists and seize weaponry. One soldier was severely wounded by Palestinian fire. Terrorists spotted fleeing in a car were attacked from the air, resulting in four being killed. Their factional affiliation was not immediately clear.

Expert Analysis

“The spread of violence and chaos in the West Bank attests not only to Hamas and Iran’s efforts to open yet another front to the Gaza war, but also to the long-term fecklessness of the Palestinian Authority. Israel has no choice but to act preemptively against terrorists who would replicate the October 7 massacre on its eastern flank.” — Mark Dubowitz, FDD CEO

“The Biden administration is pushing its vision of a two-state solution, while Israelis watch the West Bank devolve into a den of terrorism and violence. Despite the U.S. aspirations, there is no viable leadership in Ramallah that can successfully preside over a peaceful Palestinian state.” — Enia Krivine, Senior Director of FDD’s Israel Program and National Security Network

“Palestinian Car-Rammers Strike in Israel,” FDD Flash Brief

“Palestinian Terrorists Kill Israeli Policewoman in West Bank City,” FDD Flash Brief

“Support for Hamas Surges in the West Bank,” FDD Flash Brief

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