Jerusalem shooting aftermath: Israel steps up offensive in West Bank to 'thwart terrorism'

The deadly terror attack in Jerusalem yesterday—which claimed 6 lives and left 12 injured—has triggered forceful reactions from Israeli leaders and security forces, further inflaming an already volatile situation.

Two gunmen opened fire at a bus stop on a road leading to Jewish settlements, before being shot dead by an Israeli soldier and a civilian. 

The victims included a man and woman in their fifties, three men in their thirties and a sixth individual who later died in hospital. One was identified as a Spanish citizen, Yaakov Pinto.

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Palestinian media named the gunmen as Mohammad Taha and Muthanna Amro from the village of Qatanna near Ramallah. Israeli forces subsequently arrested Amro’s father.

Although militant groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad praised the attack as “heroic” and a “natural response to the occupation’s crimes", neither claimed direct responsibility. The UAE, France and Spain were among the governments that condemned the killings.

In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a large-scale operation in the West Bank, focusing on Ramallah and nearby villages. The IDF said its aim was to “thwart terrorism and strengthen the defence effort".

After visiting the scene and seeing the bus riddled with bullets, Netanyahu vowed to pursue “nests of terror” wherever they existed. He said his “instruction is to go strongly against the nests of terror", recalling past operations in refugee camps and promising similar actions elsewhere.

"We are at war, an intense war against terrorism on several fronts,” he wrote on X.

“The war is continuing—both in the Gaza Strip, where we will destroy Hamas as we have promised and release our hostages, all of our hostages, and—unfortunately—in Jerusalem as well ... We are now engaged in pursuit and are cordoning off the villages from which the murderers came. We will apprehend whoever aided and dispatched them, and we will take even stronger steps,” the PM wrote.

Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed a shift in policy, stating that anti-terror raids would now move beyond the northern West Bank to other areas. Israeli troops soon encircled Qatanna and the neighbouring village of Al Qubeibah: thought to be linked to the attackers.

The political fallout has been intense, particularly among Israel’s far-right ministers. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has championed arming civilians, credited his campaign with preventing greater loss of life and urged “citizens of Israel (to) go arm yourselves".

He also linked the shooting to a recent High Court ruling on Palestinian prisoners’ rights, calling for the deportation of terrorists’ families.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich went further, demanding the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority, which he accused of raising children to “murder Jews".

He declared that the villages the gunmen came from should resemble Rafah and Beit Hanoun—both devastated by Israeli military operations in Gaza.

Limor Son Har-Melech, an MP from Ben-Gvir’s party, argued that there was “no difference between Gaza and Jenin and between Khan Younis and Ramallah", insisting that “conquest, expulsion and settlement” were the only lasting solutions.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid offered condolences but criticised Ben-Gvir and Netanyahu for blaming the judiciary instead of assuming responsibility as a government.

The Palestinian Authority presidency meanwhile condemned “any harm to Palestinian and Israeli civilians” and rejected “all forms of violence".

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It added, however, that stability would never be achieved without an end to occupation and the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar used the attack as an argument against recognising Palestinian statehood, saying it would aim only at Israel’s destruction.

The latest attack comes at a time when a sharp rise in violence has been reported in the West Bank.

Palestinian residents, according to media reports, say Israeli troops and settlers harass them and vandalise their property. The settlers are rarely held accountable for their crimes.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 973 Palestinians in the West Bank have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers since October 2023. Gaza, meanwhile, is on the brink.

Volker Turk, the UN high commissioner for human rights, has accused Israel of committing “war crime upon war crime” and causing “mass killing” of civilians. He urged an end to the “carnage". Netanyahu, however, warned residents of Gaza City to “leave now”, ahead of a planned ground assault.

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the shooting, but also spoke of the need to break the “cycle of bloodshed”. He said only a political solution could bring lasting peace. However, it remains unlikely to happen anytime soon.