A Palestinian terrorist armed with a knife who infiltrated a West Bank settlement on Saturday morning was shot dead by a local security officer, according to the military.
The incident began shortly after 6 a.m., when a siren warning of a terrorist infiltration was activated in the settlement of Negohot following the identification of a suspect climbing over the South Hebron Hills community’s entrance gate.
One of the settlement’s volunteer patrolmen reached the entrance gate within minutes, where he identified the suspect rushing toward him while brandishing a knife.
The armed civilian then opened fire, killing the assailant, according to an initial probe of the incident carried out by the Israeli Defense Forces.
There were no other injuries in the incident.
Palestinian media identified the suspect as Muhammad al-Suweiti, 25, from the nearby village of Khirbet Salama, west of the town of Dura.
???? الشهيد محمد أحمد أبو غالية السويطي (25 عاماً) الذي ارتقى برصاص الاحتلال في خربة سلامة غرب دورا جنوب غرب الخليل بالضفة الغربية، واحتاجز جثمانه
– قوات الاحتلال أطلقت الرصاص الحي صوب الشاب أبو غالية في خربة سلامة، بزعم محاولته الاقتراب من مستوطنة “نجوهوت” المقامة على أراضي… pic.twitter.com/7gFHUKuRkX
— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) April 18, 2026
The Palestinian Authority’s Wafa news agency reported that Israeli authorities were holding Suweiti’s body.
Following the incident, the IDF said it had dispatched troops to carry out searches of the area.
After just over an hour, the military ruled out the possibility of further suspects, and the Home Front Command issued an all-clear in the settlement, allowing civilians to leave their homes.
