Benayahu Mellet is killed in a West Bank gunfight as Israeli settlers and Palestinians clash in the village of Tell.

Benayahu Mellet, a 32-year-old member of the Havat Gilad civil security squad, was killed during a violent confrontation in the northern West Bank village of Tell. The incident, the deadliest single event in the region in months, occurred when a group of Israeli settlers raided the village, leading to a clash with local residents. According to the administration, a Palestinian managed to snatch the weapon of Benayahu Mellet and fire it, killing him and Maj. Yuval Ezra. The military responded to the scene, eventually eliminating the Palestinian attacker and killing three other members of the same family. Following the clash, the administration announced plans for extensive counterterrorism operations in the sector. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a joint statement vowing to demolish the home of the Palestinian shooter and accelerate the regularization of unauthorized settler outposts. While Palestinians described the event as a massacre by settlers and occupation forces, the military maintained that the soldiers were responding to reports of an attack on hikers.

Sources