A week following the devastating shooting attack in Huwara that resulted in the tragic deaths of Shay Nigarker and his son, Aviad Nir, Hamas' military wing in Judea and Samaria has claimed responsibility for the act. The individual behind this violent episode has been identified as Osama Beni Pechel, a 20-year-old engineering student at An-Najah University in Nablus, according to Palestinian sources.
Concurrently, Egyptian authorities have been mediating conversations between Israel and Palestinian militant organizations, including Hamas, with the aim of averting a more significant security crisis. Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reported that despite these diplomatic endeavors, Egypt has failed to secure a commitment from Israel to abstain from reviving its policy of targeted assassinations.
Hamas claims responsibility for two deadly Huwara attacks
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) August 27, 2023
'Hamas and the PIJ, while doing everything possible to keep the Gaza border quiet, are also doing everything possible to incite terrorism in the West Bank,' explains our @jregevi24news#i24NEWSDesk | @ArielLW_i24 pic.twitter.com/fHX5tw9QFo
Sources within Palestinian factions, cited by the newspaper, stated that no assurances have been received from Tzachi Hanegbi, an Israeli political figure, to uphold prior agreements, the latest of which followed Operation ‘Shield and Arrow’ in the Gaza Strip this past May. These factions also issued a stark warning: any targeted killing could ignite a significant conflict. They cautioned that attempts to "set new rules through targeted eliminations of resistance fighters in and beyond the West Bank may serve as a flashpoint for a broader conflict."
The factions further clarified that they will not bow to Israeli demands to cease attacks in the West Bank. According to these groups, "The halting of attacks in the West Bank hinges upon the cessation of occupation and settlements." They stressed that their current priority is the campaign against Israel in the West Bank.
Hamas: This is the terrorist who killed a father and son in Huwara https://t.co/snkdkQIZfU via @ArutzSheva_En Israel time to eliminate the terrorist leaders who sent this terorist who killed Father & Son & also hold the terror leaders to account for murdering other Jews.
— Melvyn Moses (@melvyn_moses) August 26, 2023
In light of this, Egyptian officials were told that the only viable solution to end the attacks would be for Israel to withdraw from the West Bank, mirroring its 2005 exit from the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian factions assert that such a withdrawal would top their list of demands in any future military confrontation.
Ismail Radwan, a high-ranking Hamas official in Gaza, declared that the claim of responsibility for the Huwara attack serves as a stern message to Israel. "What follows will be even more challenging," Radwan ominously warned. Palestinian media reported that last Tuesday, military forces carried out raids in the village of Akraba, situated in the Nablus region, and identified Osama Beni Pechel’s family home. According to family members, the Israeli army informed them that their son was the perpetrator of the Huwara attack.
Father Shay Silas Nigrekar (60) and son Aviad Nir (28) from Ashdod were shot dead by terrorists in Huwara. They are just trying to get their car clean. Hamas called the murder “heroic.” pic.twitter.com/4NeqpGD7LJ
— Shaiel Ben-Ephraim (@academic_la) August 19, 2023
This multifaceted development illustrates not just the escalating tensions in the region, but also the intricate geopolitical dynamics that involve multiple stakeholders, from Palestinian factions to foreign mediators like Egypt. At the core of these complex interactions lies the ever-contentious issue of territorial control, and the continuing struggle over the West Bank adds another layer of volatility to an already unstable environment.
