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Sgt. Yosef Attiah, 21, from Petach Tikva
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| By Israel Insider staff and partners January 8, 2005 |
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Palestinian terrorists shot dead one Israeli and wounded three others, one seriously, in an ambush near the city of Nablus in Samaria.
The murdered man was Sgt. Yosef Attiah, 21, from Petach Tikva. He was an off-duty soldier, wearing civilian clothes and driving in a civilian car.
One Israeli was injured seriously, another is in moderate-to-serious condition and the third was listed in light condition.
The four men were driving on a road near a settlement when a car carrying Palestinian terrorists approached from the opposite direction and blocked the road, the IDF said. Either one or two of the gunmen shot at the Israelis before fleeing.
Palestinian Presidential candidate Abbas criticized the attack. "There is no justification for this operation, but there are a lot of reasons behind it," he said, without explanation, at a news conference, his last official event before Sunday's Palestinian presidential elections, which he is predicted to win easily. Candidates are prohibited from campaigning the day before the vote.
On Thursday, Abbas met with militants in Nablus, including Al Aqsa officials, and said afterward that they were ready to support his cease-fire efforts. One Al Aqsa leader at the meeting, Ala Sanakra, said the group halted attacks in the West Bank weeks ago as a gesture to Abbas and would continue to refrain from attacks after the election.
Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a terrorist group in Abbas' Fatah movement, claimed credit for Friday's attack.
Israel has criticized Abbas for doing nothing to stop attacks.
Abbas said he will not crack down on the Palestinian groups but hopes to reach a negotiated ceasefire with them.
Israel told Palestinian election monitor Jimmy Carter that it will reconsider 72-hour ease on security restrictions for Sunday's election if terror groups continue to exploit them.
The AP contributed to this report.
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