Attacker shot dead after fatally stabbing Israeli soldier

(Xinhua) 10:27, March 15, 2024

Israeli police and security personnel work at the scene of a stabbing attack in Beit Kama Junction, near the city of Rahat in southern Israel, on March 14, 2024. Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed. (Ilan Assayag/JINI via Xinhua)

JERUSALEM, March 14 (Xinhua) -- Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed.

The assailant, a Gaza-born Israeli citizen, stormed the soldier from behind, stabbing him in the torso just before the soldier managed to throw the suspect to the floor. The soldier was then seen pulling out his gun and shooting, according to CCTV video footage.

The police said in a statement that the assailant was shot and killed by the soldier, a 51-year-old man from the southern town of Dimona. The soldier then collapsed and was rushed to a hospital, where he died from his fatal wounds.

Zaki Heller, spokesperson for the Magan David Adom rescue service, confirmed that apart from the soldier, a civilian sustained minor wounds.

The suspect was identified by the Shin Bet security service as a 22-year-old Arab citizen of Israel, who was born in the Gaza Strip and lived in Rahat, a Bedouin city near the site of the attack, for the past five years. Both his mother and father are currently in Gaza.

He was described as a "lone-wolf" assailant who wielded a knife and rode an electric scooter to the site of the attack, according to the Shin Bet.

The attack came amid ongoing massive Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip, which have killed more than 31,300 Palestinians, according to the Gaza-based Health Ministry.

Israeli police and security personnel work at the scene of a stabbing attack in Beit Kama Junction, near the city of Rahat in southern Israel, on March 14, 2024. Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed. (Ilan Assayag/JINI via Xinhua)

Israeli police and security personnel work at the scene of a stabbing attack in Beit Kama Junction, near the city of Rahat in southern Israel, on March 14, 2024. Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed. (Ilan Assayag/JINI via Xinhua)

Israeli police and security personnel work at the scene of a stabbing attack in Beit Kama Junction, near the city of Rahat in southern Israel, on March 14, 2024. Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed. (Ilan Assayag/JINI via Xinhua)

Israeli police and security personnel work at the scene of a stabbing attack in Beit Kama Junction, near the city of Rahat in southern Israel, on March 14, 2024. Israeli police reported that a knifeman carried out a stabbing attack at a coffee shop in southern Israel on Thursday, killing a soldier and injuring a civilian. The attacker was subsequently shot and killed. (Ilan Assayag/JINI via Xinhua)