Ben Gvir Calls For End Of Cooperation With Palestinian Authorities In The Aftermath Of An Attack On The West Bank

Israeli troops at the scene of the shooting of the West Bank. (Source: Magen David Adom)

JAKARTA - National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for an end to cooperation with the Palestinian Authority, following the shooting in Al Fmbanguk, the northern West Bank that killed three people on Monday.

The right-wing minister said Israel should stop believing it has partners in the Palestinian Authority.

"Remember the Palestinian Authority supports terror, stop all cooperation with it, place as many checkpoints as possible and close the road (because) the living rights of the settlers are more important than the freedom to move the Palestinian Authority," reported The Times of Israel January 6.

"I hope my position will be accepted by the cabinet this time," he continued.

"Those trying to stop the war in Gaza will accept war in Judea and Samaria," he stressed, using Bible terms for the West Bank.

Earlier, three Israelis were killed and eight others injured in shooting attacks on cars and buses near the city of Kedumim, Israel's occupied West Bank.

Israeli Army radio said the military imposed guard on all villages in the region to search for suspects, who are believed to have fled to nearby villages in Palestine.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would drag all the perpetrators and supporters of the shooting in the West Bank that killed three Israelis as the country's military hunt down the perpetrators.

Condolences to the victim's family, PM Netanyahu promised to hunt down the perpetrators.

"We will reach out to heinous killers and take them to court, along with everyone who helps them," he said.

"No one will escape," he said.

The shooting attack, which targeted a bus and two cars, took place inside the Palestinian village of al-Funduq, which crosses the main highway used by thousands of Israelis and Palestinian drivers every day.

It happened along Route 55, a east-west highway crossing the West Bank and connecting the northwestern region of Tel Aviv to the Nablus outskirts, passing near or through Israeli settlements and Palestinian cities.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had sent large numbers of troops, as well as Israeli Air Force helicopters, to search for terrorists.

Soldiers said they made a road blockade near the site of the attack and put a blockade around the city of Nablus and several other nearby villages.

Israeli Defense Minister Katz ordered the military to "use strong force against any place that traces the killers."

"Anyone who follows in the footsteps of Hamas in Gaza and sponsors the murder and torture of Jews will pay a heavy price," he stressed.