An Arab terrorist stabbed a young Jewish woman in her back late Saturday night and escaped by foot to the direction of the nearby Al Aroob village. A second person had fled before the attacker could strike.
The victim was identified as a resident of Karnei Shomron, located several miles east of the northern metropolitan Tel Aviv area.
The woman was rushed to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem, and soldiers are searching for the attacker. The woman and another person were standing at a bus stop at the intersection on Highway 60, the only direct road between Jerusalem and Kiryat Arba-Hevron.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak, as part of the Netanyahu government’s "goodwill" measures to bolster the standing of Palestinian Authority PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, has removed the checkpoint at the intersection, and soldiers are only occasionally seen there.
The intersection, which is located two miles south of Efrat and leads to several large Jewish communities in what is know as Gush Etzion (Etzion Bloc), has frequently been targeted by Arab terrorists.
Three young Jews were murdered at the same point several years ago.