Hamas terrorists from Tulkarm opened fire early Wednesday morning at Bat Hefer, a Jewish yishuv east of Netanya, and posted a video of the shooting on social media.

This is the second such incident this week, with Hamas terrorists also shooting at Bat Hefer on Monday. On the same day, 30 Palestinians were caught crossing over the security fence from an Arab village in the Tulkarm area and were detained by IDF forces. Last week, terrorists in Tulkarm launched two drones at an Israeli kibbutz in the area. Fatah-affiliated terrorists from Tulkarm carried out a shooting at Bat Hefer last month.

In the video, the terrorists, wearing green headbands similar to the ones worn by the Nukhba terrorists during the October 7th massacre, drive toward the separation barrier, exit the car holding automatic weapons, and open fire, shooting dozens of bullets at the yishuv. B’Chasdei Hashem, despite the intense gunfire, there were no casualties but property was damaged. IDF forces launched a manhunt for the terrorists.

The video below shows dozens of Arabs climbing over the security fence from the Tulkarm area into the Emek Hefer area on Monday. The IDF said that they arrested 19 Arabs but they were unarmed and there is no fear of a security incident.

According to a Ynet report, in the past, Hamas paid sums of money to Arabs in areas like Tulkarm, Jenin or Shechem who provided footage of shootings at Israeli yishuvim.

In response to the incidents, Galit Shaul, the head of the Emek Hefer Regional Council, sent a letter on Wednesday to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant demanding an emergency meeting on security issues in the council’s yishuvim along the separation barrier.

“We have been warning for many weeks about the escalation in the separation barrier area, and unfortunately, the situation continues to deteriorate,” Shaul wrote. “We call on the army and the state to wake up and act decisively and with zero tolerance against these severe incidents. It is unacceptable that Palestinians cross the fence unimpeded in broad daylight. It is unacceptable that our communities are repeatedly targeted by gunfire.”

“Immediate action is necessary before it’s too late. We must permanently increase the presence of significant security and military forces in the area, fortify the barriers east of the wall, and most importantly, establish a buffer zone beyond the wall to prevent approaching the seam line. Our residents are living in growing fear, and it seems that every day another red line is crossed. We cannot afford to wait any longer.”

A security source said: “In recent months, the IDF, together with the Shin Bet and the police, thwarted hundreds of terrorists and terror squads who fired at Israeli yishuvim, some of them also from the Tulkarm area. Some of the operations are carried out by ambushes deployed in the field, some through intense offensive activity and some via eliminations from the air.

“We work 24/7 in defensive and offensive activity to thwart these events before they even happen, but unfortunately there is no 100%. We will track, pursue and reach those terrorists sooner or later.”

Since October 7th, residents of Bat Hefer and other yishuvim in the area have also complained of hearing the sounds of digging.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)