VFI News Terror Attacks Continue, Hamas Terrorists Arrested

Terror Attacks Continue, Hamas Terrorists Arrested | Sep 05, 2023

An off-duty Israeli soldier, Maksym Molchanov, was killed and six others, including civilians, were injured on Thursday morning, August 31, when a Palestinian terrorist rammed them with a truck at the Maccabim Crossing along Route 443, close to the central city of Modi’in.

Four soldiers, all in their 20s, were treated by Magen David Adom emergency medical personnel before being evacuated to the hospital. The off-duty soldier was in critical condition and later succumbed to his wounds; another one was seriously hurt and two others suffered minor injuries.

A Palestinian teenager was also lightly injured and an Israeli couple in their 20s sustained mild injuries when their car was struck by the terrorist, according to MDA. There were three soldiers among the victims, the army said.

The terrorist fled the scene but was tracked down and neutralized at the Hashmonaim Crossing some 10 kilometers (6 miles) away, according to the Israel Police. The Defense Ministry said its security guards operating the Hashmonaim checkpoint received a description of the terrorist’s truck from the IDF moments after the attack, and subsequently opened fire at the vehicle after identifying the assailant.

Israel Police Deputy Commissioner Avi Biton said the terrorist was a 41-year-old Palestinian who was known to security forces and had a work permit to enter Israel. (I365N /VFI News)

“God, we pray for the family of the soldier who lost his life in the terrorist attack, as well as for the full recovery of all injured parties. We ask that You eradicate terrorism so that we no longer mourn the loss of innocent lives.”

The articles included in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Vision for Israel. We try to provide accurate reporting on news pertinent to Israel, the Middle East, the diaspora, and Jewish issues around the world—and we hope that you find it both informative and useful for intercessory prayer.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Thursday evening, August 31, held an assessment of the situation with the IDF Chief of Staff, the head of the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), and the senior officers in the IDF shortly after the terrorist attack in Maccabim. "The State of Israel is under terrorist attack against civilians, mainly on the roads, and against the IDF soldiers who are guarding them on the roads and in the towns," Gallant said.

He added, "We will reach every terrorist and settle the score with him – anyone who goes out to harm Israel, everyone who sends him, will end their life in the cemetery or in prison on a short schedule as we have done until today. We know to protect our citizens and win this campaign as well."

The Chief of Staff referred to the operational situation following the recent attacks and said, "We are increasing countermeasures in Judea and Samaria, and we will draw conclusions immediately from the initial inquiry."

In the last week, there has been an increase in terrorist attacks. Overnight Wednesday, an Israeli officer and three soldiers were wounded during an operation to secure entry for civilians to the Joseph’s Tomb compound in Shechem (Nablus). An improvised explosive device was set off as the soldiers passed by. Nablus Battalion, part of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, reportedly claimed responsibility.

Hours earlier, an Israeli man was moderately wounded in a stabbing at the Shivtei Yisrael light-rail stop outside Jerusalem’s Old City. Separately, on Wednesday evening, two Israeli bus drivers were lightly injured when their vehicles were stoned by Palestinians on a highway in western Samaria. (INN / VFI News)

“God, we ask that You help all the injured Israelis recover quickly and we pray that You would heal their severe trauma after these horrifying experiences. We also ask that terrorists will be brought to justice and will be prosecuted accordingly. Let us hope that other nations will start publicly condemning and taking action against these terrorist organizations that shamelessly pride themselves on trying to harm Israel and her citizens.”

Gunshots were heard as Israeli forces were operating inside the Jenin refugee camp, the IDF said on Monday morning, September 4, with Israeli reports saying clashes erupted between the forces and armed Palestinians.

Three Palestinians affiliated with Hamas were arrested, identified by security forces as Abdallah Hassan Muhammad Zubah, Vered Asherif, and Mutazben Jaitza.

During the arrests, multiple Palestinians tried to flee the building and were hit by IDF fire, with no IDF confirmation about the condition of those who were hit. IDF forces were also attacked by gunfire and stone-throwing and returned fire.

All three Hamas terrorists had been involved in a variety of terror attacks and operations. Security forces confiscated various Palestinian weapons and turned over the three Hamas terrorists for interrogation by the Shin Bet.

The operation was not planned far in advance. It did not take place during the overnight hours as most raids do, because the specific intelligence leading to the operation only came forward shortly before the operation.

Earlier on Monday, the IDF said that Israeli forces arrested 16 Palestinian terror suspects in an overnight raid of cities and villages in Judea and Samaria. Two suspected of being involved in an attack were arrested in the village of Abu Dis. In addition, IDF, Shin Bet, and Border Police personnel confiscated stolen military equipment, including ammunition and M-16 rifle parts, in searches conducted in several villages. (JPost /VFI News)

“God, we thank You for equipping our defense forces and enabling them to act preventatively regarding terrorist attacks. We are extremely grateful that they apprehended terrorists in high positions that would potentially orchestrate more attacks against Israeli citizens. We hope that this will serve as an inhibitor so that these organizations think twice before attempting to harm Israel.”

Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah met with the secretary-general of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Ziyad al-Nakhalah and the deputy head of the Political Bureau of Hamas, Saleh Al-Arouri, reports in Lebanon said on Saturday, September 2. The meeting brings together key terror leaders who are all backed by Iran.

Reports in pro-Iran media noted that the groups discussed the “firm position” of the “forces of the resistance axis in confronting the Zionist enemy.”

Iran currently is pursuing a policy of “uniting” various fronts against Israel to fight in multiple arenas, meaning it wants to create provocations in Lebanon and also move weapons through Syria and enflame Judea and Samaria.

The reports from Lebanon said that the meeting included discussions of “political developments especially in Palestine, with a joint assessment of the situation in Judea and Samaria and the escalation of resistance movement there and the recent Israeli threats.”

Meanwhile, a violent disturbance, with the participation of more than a hundred Palestinian Arab rioters, erupted on Friday along the area of the border fence in the Gaza Strip. The rioters threw explosive devices at the fence and several attempts to cross the fence were detected and thwarted by IDF soldiers operating in the area. (JPost / VFI News)

“Too long have I lived among those who hate peace.” - Psalm 120:6

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel will build a new border fence along the border with Jordan, in a social media post on Sunday evening, September 3.

"We erected a fence on our southern border (Egypt) and stopped the infiltration from there into Israel. We thereby stopped over a million infiltrators from Africa, which would have destroyed our country," wrote Netanyahu.

"Now we will build a fence on our eastern border (Jordan) and ensure that there will be no infiltration from there either. We will protect our borders - we will protect our country!"

Netanyahu's announcement came a few days after it was cleared for publication that the IDF had thwarted an attempt to smuggle Iranian-produced explosives from Jordan to Israel in July. At the end of July, the IDF announced that it had thwarted an "unusual" weapons smuggling attempt in the Jordan Valley near Ashdot Yaakov. It is estimated that the explosives were intended for terrorist organizations in Judea and Samaria. (JPost / VFI News)

“He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me? declares the Lord.” - Jeremiah 22:16

French media reported that the United Nations Security Council on Thursday, August 31, renewed the mandate for UNIFIL, its peacekeeping force in Lebanon, for another year after tense debate around the troops' freedom of movement. The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which has been in place since 1978, acts as a buffer between Lebanon and Israel and operates near the border.

France had drafted a resolution to extend the peacekeeping mission for another year, but the United States and the United Arab Emirates argued it weakened some language on the ability of UN troops to move freely.

Thursday's resolution passed with 13 votes in favor and Russia and China abstaining, and keeps the force in place until August 31, 2024.

The mandate is largely identical to last year's agreement on allowing freedom of movement for the approximately 10,000 peacekeepers stationed in the country, a point which has been contested both by the Lebanese government and the Hezbollah terrorist organization.

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that "the United States is pleased to vote yes on the UNIFIL mandate." Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, welcomed the resolution as well. (INN /VFI News)

“One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” - Proverbs 18:24

Mostafa Rajaei, in his 40s, shook hands with Israeli weightlifter Maksim Svirsky on Saturday, August 26, after they both stood on the podium at a World Masters championship in Wieliczka, Poland, and authorities in the Islamic Republic gave him a lifetime ban.

'The weightlifting federation bans athlete Mostafa Rajaei for life from entering all sports facilities in the country and dismisses the head of the delegation for the competition, Hamid Salehinia,' the body announced in a statement cited by state media.

Iran does not recognize Israel, its sworn enemy, and prohibits all contact between Iranian and Israeli athletes. According to an Iranian state media report, Rajaei 'crossed the red lines of the Islamic Republic' at the event where the Iranian delegation had been 'sent with the support of the federation'.

Rajaei is a former member of the Iranian national team and represented his country at the Asian Weightlifting Championships in 2015 in Thailand.

In 2021, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged athletes 'not to shake hands with a representative of the (Israeli) criminal regime to obtain a medal'. (DM / VFI News)

“But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.” - Proverbs 4:19

Israel could be part of regional and European solutions to fiber optics and natural gas linked to the Arab world, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after landing in Cyprus on Sunday, September 3, for a trilateral meeting that will also include Greece.

“We have the possibility of making real the idea of an Asia-Middle East-Europe corridor, especially infrastructure” that would be the extension of the Abraham Accords, Netanyahu said during a joint press event with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.

Such a plan could also involve countries with which Israel seeks to normalize ties, Netanyahu said. Those words hinted at the possibility that such a deal could also involve Saudi Arabia.

“I’m quite confident that we will have a corridor that could go through Israel, from Asia to the Arabian Peninsula to Israel to Cyprus, and from there to Europe."

“An example of the most obvious one is a fiber optic connection. That’s the shortest route. It’s the safest route. It’s the most economic route,” Netanyahu said.

In that vein, he said, his discussions in Cyprus will also include conversations “about various options for cooperation in natural gas. We’ve been very fortunate, both our countries, in discovering reserves of gas. And we’re talking about how we could cooperate in this,” he said. (JPost / VFI News)

The suggestions, opinions, and scripture references made by VFI News writers and editors are based on the best information received.

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