Shooting in the West Bank Injures 6; Suspected to Involve Palestinians

Israeli emergency services announced today that "three attackers, suspected to be Palestinians, opened fire at a checkpoint on a main road between Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, injuring six." They reported that "security forces returned fire at the attackers." The police stated that "three individuals were neutralized by security forces at the checkpoint, after arriving in a suspicious vehicle and firing at our forces." The Israeli ambulance service indicated that "one of the injured is in serious condition," but did not provide any details about the identities of the injured. The Israeli internal security service (Shin Bet) reported that "at least two of the assailants belong to Hamas." Police Commissioner Yaakov Shabtai stated that "the attackers were planning a much larger attack." He added in remarks to reporters at the scene that "they arrived in a vehicle coming from the direction of Bethlehem and opened fire when the Israeli forces began to interrogate them," confirming that they were killed when forces responded with gunfire.