Police arrest 5 in connection with Bnei Brak terrorist attack

Security forces arrested overnight Wednesday five Palestinians suspected of involvement in the terror attack that occurred in Bnei Brak the evening before. Among the arrested is the brother of the perpetrator.

On Tuesday, a Palestinian gunman shot and killed five residents shortly before being neutralized. He was later identified as 27-year-old Diaa Hamarsheh, from the Arab village of Yaba.

In a statement, the military said the suspects were being questioned. A group that represents Palestinian prisoners said all those arrested are Hamarsheh’s relatives.

Israel has ramped up its security presence across the country in a
bid to snuff out any further violence. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was set to hold a meeting of his Security Cabinet later on Wednesday, after convening his top security officials shortly after the attack in Bnei Brak.

“We are dealing with a new wave of terror,” Bennett said in a statement. “As in other waves, we will prevail.”

Tuesday’s shootings occurred at two locations in Bnei Brak, an ultra-Orthodox city just east of Tel Aviv. Police said a preliminary investigation found the gunman was armed with an assault rifle and opened fire on passersby before he was shot by officers at the scene.

Five people were killed in the attack, including a police officer who arrived at the scene and engaged the shooter. Two other victims were foreign citizens from Ukraine. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the Ukrainians had arrived before or after the war with Russia began.

No Palestinian groups immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Hamas praised the “heroic operation,” but stopped short of claiming responsibility.

On Sunday, a pair of gunmen killed two young police officers during a shooting in the central city of Hadera, and last week, a lone assailant killed four people in a car-ramming and stabbing attack in the southern city of Beersheba.

Source: Israel Hayom