Updated Mar 28, 2022 - World

ISIS claims responsibility for deadly shooting attack in Israel

Israeli security forces gather at the site of an attack that left two dead in the city of Hadera on March 27.

Israeli security forces gather at the site of an attack that left two dead in the city of Hadera on March 27. Photo: Gil Cohen-Magen/AFP via Getty Images

Police said Sunday that gunmen killed at least two Israelis and wounded several others in what officials described as a "terrorist attack" in the central Israeli city of Hadera. Militant group ISIS later claimed responsibility for the attack.

The big picture: The shooting took place as Secretary of State Tony Blinken visits the country to attend a historic series of meetings with the foreign ministers of Israel, Egypt, Morocco, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates in southern Israel.

Driving the news: Sunday's attack began around 9pm local time, when the two assailants started shooting with automatic weapons on a group of police officers and civilians, according to police.

  • Officers from a special police unit who were at a nearby restaurant responded to the scene when they heard gunshots and killed the two perpetrators, police said.
  • The two attackers were cousins from the Arab city of Umm el-Fahm in Israel, police said. Israeli officials claim the attackers were supporters of ISIS.
  • Police forces made several arrests in Umm el-Fahm after the attack.

What they're saying: "Tonight's heinous terrorist attack is an attempt by violent extremists to intimidate and damage the fabric of life here," Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid tweeted.

  • Lapid briefed his Egyptian, Moroccan, Emirati and Bahraini counterparts about the attack and they all condemned it, the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement. Blinken joined the foreign ministers at the meetings' location about an hour and a half after the attack, according to Israeli foreign ministry officials.
  • Blinken tweeted later that the U.S. condemns "today’s terrorist attack in Hadera, Israel."
  • "Such senseless acts of violence and murder have no place in society. We stand with our Israeli partners and send our condolences to the families of the victims," Blinken added.
  • A senior Israeli foreign ministry official told reporters the meetings between the foreign ministers will continue Monday as planned.

State of play: Four Israelis were killed in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba last week in the deadliest terrorist attack on Israeli civilians since 2016.

  • According to police, the attacker, who was also killed, was a convicted supporter of ISIS.
  • The Israeli Shin Bet security agency is investigating whether the perpetrators of Sunday's shooting have any connections to the Beersheba attacker, according to Israeli security officials.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with ISIS' claiming responsibility for the attack, Blinken's statement, as well as additional details from police and Israeli officials.

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