7 IDF soldiers wounded by terror blast in northern Samaria just before Sabbath

Seven Israeli soldiers were wounded in a blast caused by an explosive device hidden and activated by terrorists of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad near the village Silat al-Dhahar in northern Samaria on Friday afternoon.

The Israel Defense Forces stated the three soldiers suffered moderate injuries and were evacuated by helicopter to Rabin Medical Center in Petah Tikva.

Four other soldiers were lightly injured in the attack carried out near the settlement of Homesh. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist group later claimed responsibility and published a video of the attack.

The footage showed several PIJ terrorists armed with M-16 rifles opened fire at the soldiers, who returned fire and pursued the fleeing attackers.

The terrorists hid nearby and filmed the IDF soldier approaching the location of the hidden bomb, detonating it when the soldiers arrived at the spot before fleeing the scene.

Following the attack, Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, claimed that the Palestinian Authority had some share of the blame while speaking to Channel 12 news.

“The Palestinian Authority is trying to heat up the sector in northern Samaria. The attack symbolizes a step up, and it is a test of the government and the senior members of the security establishment,” Dagan said.

“The citizens of Israel need to have security in northern Samaria and in the entire State of Israel. We work around the clock together with all the security agencies to reach those terrorists, arrest or eliminate them while they are still inside the cities and villages,” he said.

“A difficult incident in Samaria. We are searching for the terrorists, and will catch them sooner or later,” an Israeli security official told Army Radio.

“Over last week, we arrested about 100 wanted terrorists and eliminated several terrorists, including those who were planning to carry out attacks. This is a joint effort of the Shin Bet Central Command and the police,” the official said.

Since the outbreak of the war between Hamas and Israel on Oct. 7, the Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet security agency have been hard at work to catch terrorists in the West Bank to prevent a flare-up on an additional front.

Earlier on Friday, the IDF said that soldiers had killed a PIJ terrorist who was planning major terror attacks in the West Bank village of Silat al-Harithiya.

According to the Israeli military, Muhammad Shalabi was involved in “significant terror activity” on behalf of PIJ, including shooting attacks, preparing explosive devices, and delivering terror funds.

On Saturday, the IDF carried out a counter-terror operation in the Nur al-Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm, Samaria.

Combat engineering troops raided the camp with heavy equipment and bulldozers, uncovering roads by “scraping” them to reveal IEDs buried underground.

Amid several fire exchanges with armed terrorists, a number of IEDs were found.

Since Oct. 7, the IDF said its troops have arrested some 3,500 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including over 1,500 affiliated with the Hamas terrorist organization.