A Palestinian citizen of Israel allegedly carried out a drive-by shooting across three locations in the South Sharon region, killing one 35-year-old man and wounding five others. Israeli security forces neutralized the suspect, who reportedly hailed from the city of Tayibe.

One 35-year-old killed and five wounded in Kokhav Yair and Tzur Yitzhak

The violence resulted in the death of a 35-year-old man who succumbed to gunshot wounds, according to Magen David Adom, Israel's national emergency service. Five other individuals were injured during the spree; two people in their 40s are currently in serious condition , while a 61-year-old woman and two men in their 30s are listed in moderate condition.

The attacks created immediate panic in the town of Tzur Yitzhak, where residents were ordered to lock themselves inside their homes under a terrorist infiltration alert. in Kokhav Yair , eyewitness Shachar Hazon, 27, described hearing a gunshot so loud it hurt her ears before seeing a man at a petrol station collapse while holding his shoulder.

Three South Sharon locations targeted via illegal vehicle plates

The assailant utilized a vehicle equipped with what is believed to be an illegal Israeli number plate to move rapidly between three separate areas in the South Sharon region. According to the report, the shooter remained inside the car during the attacks, a tactic that allowed the perpetrator to strike multiple locations within a matter of minutes.

Security forces later recovered a makeshift submachine gun from the scene, which has been identified in circulating photos as a Carl Gustav or similar improvised weapon. The IDF dispatched soldiers to the Kokhav Yair area to conduct extensive searches for additional militants and provide medical aid to the victims.

The Tayibe suspect and the dispute over a second shooter

Police Chief Danny Levy identified the neutralized attacker as an Arab-Israeli from the nearby town of Tayibe, noting that the individual had a prior criminal record. however, a significant discrepancy remains regarding the number of assailants involved in the operation.

While the Israeli police maintain there was only one attacker, as reported by local media and the military,there were initial claims that a second shooter had been wounded and subsequently killed by the IDF . This contradiction between the police narrative and military reports leaves an open question as to whether a second operative was indeed involved or if the initial reports were premature.

Itamar Ben-Gvir and the push for the Death Penalty for Terrorists Law

The attack has triggered an immediate political reaction, with Minister for National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir calling for the execution of the suspect. Ben-Gvir referenced the "Death Penalty for Terrorists Law," a piece of legislation enacted by Jewish Strength that seeks the death penalty for Palestinians from the West Bank convicted of deadly attacks and establishes it as a possibility for Palestinian citizens of Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has since held a security assessment to monitor the situation. The rhetoric from Ben-Gvir underscores a hardening legal stance in Israel, where the Minister explicitly stated on X that "whoever murders a Jew - will see the hangman's noose."

Tulkarem and Qalqilya checkpoints closed as Hamas praises attack

In the aftermath of the shooting,Israeli forces took preemptive security measures in the West Bank, closing two checkpoints at the entrances to Tulkarem and establishing a temporary checkpoint at the entrance to Qalqilya. These cities are located north of the attack sites, near the border of the occupied West Bank.

The Palestinian militant group Hamas issued a statement praising the shooting, although the organization did not officially claim responsibility for the operation. This pattern of praise without formal ownership is common in the region's current security climate, where lone-wolf attacks are often encouraged by larger militant groups to destabilize central Israeli hubs.