Netanyahu Blames Abbas for the Death of Israeli Couple

Following the death of an Israeli couple in the West Bank, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held Palestinian leaders responsible for the attack, claiming they are involved in 'incitement regarding Al-Aqsa.' On Thursday, October 1, Netanyahu stated, 'It has been proven once again that the unchecked incitement of Palestinians leads to attacks like the one that occurred today.' Itamar Henkin and his wife, Naama, were shot and killed by individuals in a Palestinian vehicle while driving through two Jewish settlements in the West Bank on the evening of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, as they were en route to Jerusalem. Their four children, aged six months to nine years, who were seated in the back of the car, were unharmed in the shooting. Netanyahu became aware of this security incident after his speech at the United Nations General Assembly. The Israeli army has sent large contingents of its forces to the Palestinian villages near the incident, and these areas are currently under siege. Meanwhile, residents of several Jewish settlements have attacked a number of Palestinian villages in the West Bank for 'revenge,' while Israeli security forces are apparently supposed to prevent such retaliatory assaults. According to Israeli media, in addition to Netanyahu and right-wing parties, several opposition politicians have also accused Mahmoud Abbas and leaders of the Palestinian Authority of 'incitement that leads to the murder of Israelis.' Reuven Rivlin, the President of Israel, personally attended the funeral of the Israeli couple on Friday, October 2. Meanwhile, Hamas and other Palestinian organizations praised the 'Nablus operation' on Thursday night, calling it a 'natural reaction.' This assassination follows recent unrest in East Jerusalem over Al-Aqsa and Palestinian opposition to Jewish entry into the Islamic mosque compound. Tensions in East Jerusalem have spilled over into the West Bank, resulting in the deaths and injuries of several Palestinians, with dozens arrested. Israel also claims that during a stone-throwing incident three weeks ago in Jerusalem, an Israeli man died in a car accident. Meanwhile, Israel has increased the punishment for Palestinian stone-throwers to a minimum of four years in prison. Palestinians are angry over the sanctity of Al-Aqsa and the fact that Israel does not identify the perpetrators of the murder of a Palestinian family. Two months ago, Israeli settlers set fire to a Palestinian family's home in the village of Duma in the West Bank by throwing a Molotov cocktail inside the house at midnight; this act resulted in the burning of the family's infant and subsequently the death of the parents. Only one four-year-old boy from the Dawabsheh family, who spent two months in the hospital, remains. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon stated last month that security forces cannot bring the identity of the perpetrators of the Palestinian family's murder to the judicial system, even if they know who they are. In this context, the reserve forces of the Israeli army have been called up due to unrest in Jerusalem, and Abbas has threatened to resign if the peace talks do not change course.