JERUSALEM, Israel – The Hamas terror group on Monday claimed responsibility for a shooting attack last week that killed a security guard outside the entrance to Ariel, a major Israeli settlement community in the West Bank – biblical Judea and Samaria.
“This is an episode in a series of responses by Al-Qassam Brigades to the aggression on Al-Aqsa Mosque,” Hamas’s armed wing said in a statement.
For weeks, tensions have been boiling in Jerusalem at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound located on the Temple Mount – Judaism’s holiest site and the third holiest site in Islam. Muslim rioters have repeatedly clashed with Israeli police, threatening to set off a broader conflict with Palestinian terror groups in the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian terror groups have characterized themselves as the “defenders” of the Jerusalem holy site, and often use the clashes there as justification to attack Israel. Last year, efforts by Israeli police to stop persistent rioting on the Temple Mount helped trigger an 11-day war with Gaza that began after Hamas fired rockets at Jerusalem.
Israel is currently facing a wave of Palestinian terror attacks that have killed 16 Israelis in a matter of weeks.
Hamas said the “heroic” attack that killed 23-year-old security guard Daniel Vyacheslav Golev Friday night “will not be the last one.”
This is the first time Hamas has claimed responsibility for a terror attack in Israel since 2018.
On Saturday, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar threatened a broader “regional, religious war” if Israel “violates” Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
“Our people must prepare for a great battle if the occupation does not cease its aggression against the Al-Aqsa Mosque,” Sinwar said during a speech in Gaza.
He also called for more attacks against Israeli targets in the West Bank.
***Please sign up for CBN Newsletters and download the CBN News app to ensure you keep receiving the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***
The remainder of this article is available in its entirety at CBN
