Attack in Tel Aviv wounds 8 as Israel’s deadly raid in West Bank continues

Eight people were wounded by a Palestinian in a car-ramming and stabbing attack in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, the Israeli authorities said, raising fears of tit-for-tat violence on the second day of the Israeli military’s large-scale incursion aimed at rooting out Palestinian armed groups in the West Bank city of Jenin.

The Palestinian death toll in the Jenin operation rose to 11, according to Palestinian health officials. Four were younger than 18, at least two of whom were claimed by Palestinian militant groups as fighters. At least 120 people were injured, including 20 in serious condition, the Palestinian Health Ministry said.

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The sun rose on Tuesday on deserted alleyways in Jenin’s refugee camp, a usually crowded quarter abutting the West Bank city that is the focus of the military incursion. The military activities sent people fleeing, with as many as 3,000 of the camp’s roughly 17,000 residents seeking shelter in schools and other public buildings, or with families elsewhere.

A day after Israel launched the operation, about 1,000 troops continued searching the camp on Tuesday after earlier finding and confiscating caches of weapons, explosive devices and other military equipment, according to the Israeli military.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Tuesday afternoon, during a visit to an army base near Jenin, that the operation was in its final stages.

Jenin has been at the center of escalating tensions and violence in the year leading up to the incursion early Monday, and, as the military continued its operation there, Israeli authorities said that a West Bank Palestinian had attacked Israeli civilians in Tel Aviv. A pregnant woman injured in the attack lost her baby, Israeli television reported.

In security camera footage broadcast on Israeli television, a car can be seen slamming into a curb in a residential area in the northern part of the city. The driver then leaves his car and chases and stabs at passersby. He was then shot and killed by a civilian, Israeli security officials said. Three people are in serious condition, the police said.

The Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service, identified the attacker as Abd al-Wahab Khalaila.

Hamas, the Palestinian militant faction that controls Gaza, claimed Khalaila as a member and praised the attack. But Hamas stopped short of taking direct responsibility for the assault.