Israeli man shot and injured driving through flashpoint West Bank town

An Israeli man was shot and seriously wounded in a terrorist attack in the West Bank on Sunday morning.

David Stern, a former US Marine, was driving through the village of Huwara near Nablus in Area A when a gunman with a makeshift semi-automatic weapon opened fire on the car on Route 60, spraying it with bullets.

Stern, a weapons instructor who lives in the settlement of Itamar, was able to shoot back, forcing the gunman to flee. Stern’s wife was also in the car but was not hit. The US Ambassador to Israel said Stern also has American citizenship.

Injured, he drove to an IDF military checkpoint, from where he was taken to Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikvah. His injuries were described as serious but not life-threatening. His wife was taken to hospital suffering from traumatic shock.

The IDF said the Palestinian assailant was shot by both the victim and soldiers immediately after the attack. He fled on foot but was detained shortly after and handed over to Israel’s internal intelligence agency Shin Bet for questioning.

It is the latest such attack in the area in recent weeks, and comes after two Israeli brothers – Hallel and Yagel Yaniv, aged 21 and 19 – were shot and killed in a terror attack while driving through Huwara.

In response to that, settlers staged what a senior police officer called “a pogrom”, killing one Palestinian, injuring hundreds, and burning scores of Palestinian homes and cars. It prompted a lightning bout of regional diplomacy to restore calm.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the perpetrator “will bear the responsibility” but a spokesman for Hamas said it was “a natural reaction to the occupation’s crimes against our people”.

Palestinian terror attacks in recent months have left 14 Israelis dead and several injured, while at least 85 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the year, most during security raids carried out by the IDF.