The IDF said two soldiers were wounded, one severely, Saturday evening in a drive-by shooting in Samaria, the latest in months-long violence between Israel and the Palestinians.
The attack was the third to take place in the Palestinian town of Hawara in less than a month. One soldier was seriously wounded and the second was in moderate condition, the military said. A manhunt was launched as forces sealed roads leading to Hawara.
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No Palestinian group claimed responsibility for the shooting attack, but Hamas, the terrorist group ruling the Gaza Strip, praised it. "The resistance in the West Bank can surprise the occupation every time and the occupation cannot enjoy safety," Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said.
Video: The site of the attack in Hawara / Usage under Israel's Intelletual Property Law Article 27a
Violence has surged in recent months in the West Bank and east Jerusalem amid near-daily Israeli arrest raids in Palestinian-controlled areas and a string of Palestinian attacks.
US-backed regional efforts to defuse tensions have led to the meeting of Israeli and Palestinian officials in Jordan and Egypt respectively, where parties hoped to prevent a further escalation during the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
On Feb. 27, when Israeli and Palestinian officials met in Jordan's Aqaba, a Palestinian terrorist shot and killed two Israelis in Hawara. Another shooting attack in Hawara took place as the parties met again in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh, wounding two Israelis.
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