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Two IDF Soldiers Killed in West Bank Terror Attack
Illustrative: Israeli security and rescue personnel at the scene of a shooting attack on a car and bus where at least three Israelis were killed near Kedumim in the West Bank, Israel’s national ambulance service Magen David Adom (MDA) said, Jan. 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Rami Amichay
JNS.org — Two Israel Defense Forces soldiers were killed and eight more were wounded when a terrorist opened fire at a military post near the village of Tayasir in northern Samaria on Tuesday morning.
The slain troops were identified by the military as IDF Sgt. Maj. (res.) Ofer Yung, 39, a squad commander in the Ephraim Regional Brigade’s 8211th Reserve Battalion, from Tel Aviv, and Sgt. Maj. (res.) Avraham Tzvi Tzivka Friedman, 43, a soldier in the battalion, from Ein Hanatziv.
According to an initial IDF probe, the terrorist managed to take up a position near the entrance of the military post and fired on troops as they exited. The terrorist was said to have exchanged fire with troops inside the post for several minutes before being killed.
The terrorist, who reportedly had been waiting in the area for hours before carrying out the attack, was said to have been armed with an M-16 rifle and two magazines, and was wearing a tactical vest.
According to the IDF, two of the wounded soldiers were listed as being in serious condition, while the other six victims sustained light wounds.
The death toll among Israeli troops on all fronts since the Hamas-led terror attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 now stands at 844.
The village of Tayasir is located near Tammun, an area where Israeli forces have been conducting a major counter-terrorism operation since Jan. 31, dubbed “Operation Iron Wall.”
On Thursday, IDF Staff Sgt. Liam Hazi, 20, of the Kfir Brigade’s Haruv reconnaissance unit became the operation’s first casualty. Hazi was killed in a firefight with terrorists in Jenin, the military said.
The IDF expanded the operation on Monday and plans to form a new battalion that will remain in northern Samaria once the operation ends.
The IDF has killed more than 50 Palestinian terrorists since the start of the operation on Jan. 21, the military announced on Sunday evening.
At least 35 gunmen were killed during ground operations in the Jenin and Tulkarem areas, while another 15 were killed in airstrikes, according to the IDF. More than 100 wanted terrorists have been detained thus far.
Israeli forces “located and confiscated dozens of weapons, destroyed hundreds of explosive devices and dozens of additional charges that were planted on roads to harm our forces,” the military stated.
On Sunday, the operation was expanded to include Tammun near Nablus. On Jan. 20, one IDF soldier was killed and four others were wounded when their vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in the town.
Earlier on Sunday, the army said it had destroyed “several buildings in Jenin, in the Menashe Brigade [area of responsibility], which were used as terror infrastructure.”
According to the IDF, security forces destroyed 23 structures in the Jenin area where terrorist infrastructure was located after searching hundreds of buildings in the vicinity. During the sweeps, explosives laboratories, weapons, observation posts and more terror infrastructure was found.
The head of the Jordan Valley Regional Council, David Elhayani, said on the Kan Reshet Bet radio station after Tuesday’s attack that he believes the ongoing military operation in northern Samaria is not enough.
“Anyone who is under the illusion that tomorrow morning, as a result of one operation or another, there will be no more attacks is deceiving themselves and does not understand the reality we live in,” charged Elhayani. “The army is carrying out intense activities and operations unlike anything seen before, but this operation needs to be expanded.”
In a statement released in response to the attack, the Yesha Council of Juduea and Samaria communities expressed support for IDF troops and their commanders, praising their efforts to defend Israeli citizens.
“The determined fighting of our heroic warriors pushes the evil terrorists away from the homes of Israeli citizens and prevents scenes similar to those of Oct. 7 from occurring in places like Afula and Netanya, God forbid,” said the council.
“This morning’s attack once again proves that Arab terrorism seeks to harm the State of Israel and IDF soldiers,” the statement continued. “The Israeli government has a duty to decisively defeat Arab terrorism and to announce the application of Israeli sovereignty, which will prevent the establishment of a terror state in the heart of the country.”
The post Two IDF Soldiers Killed in West Bank Terror Attack first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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North London Synagogue, Nursery Targeted in Eighth Local Antisemitic Incident in Just Over a Week
Demonstrators against antisemitism in London on Sept. 8, 2025. Photo: Campaign Against Antisemitism
A synagogue and its nursery school in the Golders Green area of north London were targeted in an antisemitic attack on Thursday morning — the eighth such incident locally in just over a week amid a shocking surge of anti-Jewish hate crimes in the area.
The synagogue and Jewish nursery were smeared with excrement in an antisemitic outrage echoing a series of recent incidents targeting the local Jewish community.
“The desecration of another local synagogue and a children’s nursery with excrement is a vile, deliberate, and premeditated act of antisemitism,” Shomrim North West London, a Jewish organization that monitors antisemitism and also serves as a neighborhood watch group, said in a statement.
“This marks the eighth antisemitic incident locally in just over a week, to directly target the local Jewish community,” the statement read. “These repeated attacks have left our community anxious, hurt, and increasingly worried.”
Local law enforcement confirmed they are reviewing CCTV footage and collecting evidence to identify the suspect and bring them to justice.
This latest anti-Jewish hate crime came just days after tens of thousands of people marched through London in a demonstration against antisemitism, amid rising levels of antisemitic incidents across the United Kingdom since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
In just over a week, seven Jewish premises in Barnet, the borough in which Golders Green is located, have been targeted in separate antisemitic incidents.
According to the Metropolitan Police, an investigation has been launched into the targeted attacks, all of which involved the use of bodily fluids.
During the incidents, a substance was smeared on four synagogues and a private residence, while a liquid was thrown at a school and over a car in two other attacks.
As the investigation continues, local police said they believe the same suspect is likely responsible for all seven offenses, which are being treated as religiously motivated criminal damage.
No arrests have been made so far, but law enforcement said it is actively engaging with the local Jewish community to provide reassurance and support.
The Community Security Trust (CST), a nonprofit charity that advises Britain’s Jewish community on security matters, condemned the recent wave of attacks and called on authorities to take immediate action.
“The extreme defilement of several Jewish locations in and around Golders Green is utterly abhorrent and deeply distressing,” CST said in a statement.
“CST is working closely with police and communal partners to support victims and help identify and apprehend the perpetrator,” it continued.
The Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) also denounced the attacks, calling for urgent measures to protect the Jewish community.
“These repeated incidents are leaving British Jews anxious and vulnerable in their own neighborhoods, not to mention disgusted,” CAA said in a statement.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, the United Kingdom has experienced a surge in antisemitic crimes and anti-Israel sentiment.
Last month, CST published a report showing there were 1,521 antisemitic incidents in the UK from January to June of this year. It marks the second-highest total of incidents ever recorded by CST in the first six months of any year, following the first half of 2024 in which 2,019 antisemitic incidents were recorded.
In total last year, CST recorded 3,528 antisemitic incidents for 2024, the country’s second worst year for antisemitism despite being an 18 percent drop from 2023’s record of 4,296.
In previous years, the numbers were significantly lower, with 1,662 incidents in 2022 and 2,261 hate crimes in 2021.
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Germany to Hold Off on Recognizing Palestinian State but Will Back UN Resolution for Two-State Solution
German national flag flutters on top of the Reichstag building, that seats the Germany’s lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany, March 25, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
Germany will support a United Nations resolution for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict but does not believe the time has come to recognize a Palestinian state, a government spokesman told Reuters on Thursday.
“Germany will support such a resolution which simply describes the status quo in international law,” the spokesman said, adding that Berlin “has always advocated a two-state solution and is asking for that all the time.”
“The chancellor just mentioned two days ago again that Germany does not see that the time has come for the recognition of the Palestinian state,” the spokesman added.
Britain, France, Canada, Australia, and Belgium have all said they will recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly later this month, although London said it could hold back if Israel were to take steps to ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and commit to a long-term peace process.
The United States strongly opposes any move by its European allies to recognize Palestinian independence.
Last week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the US has told other countries that recognition of a Palestinian state will cause more problems.
Those who see recognition as a largely symbolic gesture point to the negligible presence on the ground and limited influence in the conflict of countries such as China, India, Russia, and many Arab states that have recognized Palestinian independence for decades.
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UN Security Council, With US Support, Condemns Strikes on Qatar
Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani attends an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, following an Israeli attack on Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, at UN headquarters in New York City, US, Sept. 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
The United Nations Security Council on Thursday condemned recent strikes on Qatar’s capital Doha, but did not mention Israel in the statement agreed to by all 15 members, including Israel‘s ally the United States.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with the attack on Tuesday, escalating its military action in what the United States described as a unilateral attack that does not advance US and Israeli interests.
The United States traditionally shields its ally Israel at the United Nations. US backing for the Security Council statement, which could only be approved by consensus, reflects President Donald Trump’s unhappiness with the attack ordered by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Council members underscored the importance of de-escalation and expressed their solidarity with Qatar. They underlined their support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar,” read the statement, drafted by Britain and France.
The Doha operation was especially sensitive because Qatar has been hosting and mediating negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Gaza war.
“Council members underscored that releasing the hostages, including those killed by Hamas, and ending the war and suffering in Gaza must remain our top priority,” the Security Council statement read.
The Security Council will meet later on Thursday to discuss the Israeli attack at a meeting due to be attended by Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani.