12 March 2011 | Palestine News Network
Five Israeli settlers from the same family were stabbed to death on Saturday at dawn in their homes located in the settlement of Itamar in northern West Bank.
Israeli sources said that the five killed were the father, mother and three children aged 11, three and three-month old baby. According to Israeli police and army reports the attacker entered the home at around 1:00 am and stabbed the family as they slept, three children of the family aged 12, 6 and 2 managed to escape to nearby house and call for help.
Large forces of Israeli military and police closed all roads around the settlement and engaged in a manhunt for the attacker who escaped the scene; police reports say maybe it’s more than one attacker. The Israeli army also started an investigation on the fact that the alarm system of the security fence around the settlement did not go off when the attacker jumped the fence into the settlement.
Later on Saturday Israeli troops stormed a number of west Bank villages in northern West Bank and searched homes.
Palestinian sources said that soldiers invaded the villages of Zababda, Mislya, Sanour and Awarta and searched homes and farm lands nearby. Troops enforced a curfew on Awarta village and announced all northern West Bank as a closed military zone, Palestinian sources added.
Settlers groups accused Palestinians of the attack, the reasons and the group behind the attack remains unknown. Eleven Palestinian civilians were reported injured by Israeli army and settlers attacks in the past week, Palestinian sources reported. Settlers attacks on Palestinians escalated in the West Bank shortly after Israeli troops evacuated a settlers post in northern West Bank two weeks ago.