Two Jews were R”L murdered shortly after 7am Friday morning, the last day of Chol Hamoed Pesach, in a terrorist shooting attack at the Nitzanei Shalom Industrial Park, adjacent to Palestinian Authority-controlled Tulkarem.

Magen David Adom reports receiving a call for gunshot victims at approximately 7:20am. The first ambulance on the scene responded from Bat Chafer, reporting one of the two victims was already dead, beyond resuscitation efforts.

According to MDA paramedic Itzik Mimram, one of the victims was killed immediately as a result of the gunfire and the second victim was found in critical condition, eventually pronounced dead on the scene. Their personal weapons were found on their bodies.

The victims were area security personnel, identified as Shimon Mizrachi, 54, of Bat Chafer, an IDF reserve duty colonel and the industrial area’s security officer. The second victim was identified as Eli Wasserman, 51, of Alfei Menashe.

What is believed to have been a lone terrorist responsible for the attack, fled back to Tulkarem. Army officials on the scene were confident he was unable to cross the border wall into an area under Israeli control.

Ironically, the industrial park was established in 1995 towards providing additional employment for area PA residents. Hundreds of PA residents earn their livelihood in the industrial park daily.

In the summer of 2002, Shani Ladani was murdered in the same location, shot at point-blank range.

The al-Quds faction of the Islamic Jihad terror organization boasted responsibility for the fatal attack as well as a Friday morning Kassam rocket attack into southern Israel.

PA sources later in the morning reported IDF troops have entered Tulkarem as the manhunt for the terrorist(s) continues.

In response to the fatal attack, MK Prof. Aryeh Eldad on the National Union Party sated that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is directly responsible, citing his recent decisions to remove checkpoints in Yehuda and Shomron and hand additional weapons over to the terrorists. He added that one who is unable to protect the citizens of Israel is not fit to serve as prime minister or defense minister.

MK Uri Ariel, a colleague of Eldad, stated the attacks in the past and the most recent attack show once again the residents of PA areas just take advantage of humanitarian gestures, using the situation against us.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)