A tragic vehicle-ramming attack in the West Bank has resulted in the death of 24-year-old Indian-origin Israeli soldier Staff Sergeant Geri Gideon Hanghal. The incident occurred near the Beit El settlement, with the attack being reported on Wednesday. Hanghal, a resident of Nof HaGalil and a member of the Kfir Brigade’s Nahshon Battalion, was struck by a truck driven by the assailant, identified as 58-year-old Hayil Dhaifallah from Rafat, a central West Bank town.
Hanghal, who immigrated to Israel from northeast India in 2020, was part of the Bnei Menashe community—a group believed to descend from the ancient Israelite tribe of Menasseh. His death has left his community in shock, with his funeral scheduled for Thursday.
The vehicle involved in the attack, captured in footage from the scene, swerved off a busy highway and crashed into an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) guard post before stopping. This attack is part of a broader pattern of violence in the region, including recent attempts by Hamas and other groups to carry out bombings and shootings.
The ongoing conflict, which escalated significantly following Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, has seen intensified Israeli counter-terrorism operations in the West Bank. The IDF has conducted over 70 airstrikes in the region since the start of the conflict, targeting what they describe as terror cells and weapon smuggling operations.
The violence has also been exacerbated by confrontations between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, with recent attacks by hardline settlers contributing to the unrest. According to the Palestinian Authority’s health ministry, over 670 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank since October 7, though the IDF contends that most of these deaths were in the context of armed conflict or attacks on security forces.
Sources By Agencies
