Hamas claims bus attack in West Bank that wounded 8 people, including 4 soldiers

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Hamas claimed responsibility for a shooting attack on an Israeli bus in the occupied West Bank on Friday that wounded eight people, including four soldiers.

It was the latest violence to scar the territory as tensions run high 14 months into the Israel-Hamas war.

The attacker, who Hamas identified in a statement as Samer Hussein, 46, was killed by Israeli troops shortly after opening fire toward the bus at a junction near the Israeli settlement of Ariel.

The Israeli military said that the attacker targeted the bus at a junction near the Israeli settlement of Ariel, before being shot by Israeli troops. Paramedics said three people were critically wounded.

Attacks by Palestinian militants on Israelis in the volatile territory have grown more common since the start of the war, as Palestinian deaths have also spiked. Israeli fire has killed 796 Palestinians since Oct. 7, 2023, mostly in military raids on Palestinian cities and towns. Attacks by settlers on Palestinians and their property have also increased.