Breslov Chosid Killed, Five Wounded in Shooting near Kever Yosef

One person, 30, was killed R”L and five others were severely injured in a shooting attack in the West Bank on Sunday.

A group of Breslov Chassidim was shot at in their car as they were entering the city of Nablus (Shchem) en route to Kever Yosef. The driver drove to the nearest army base where they were tended to. One passenger, who sustained wounds to his upper body, could not be revived and R”L died Sunday morning. A 20-year-old and a 17-year-old were taken to Rabin Medical Center-Beilinson in Petah Tikva with moderate injuries, and three more were treated on the army base for minor wounds.

The group, which included 15 visitors, reportedly did not coordinate its entry to Joseph’s Tomb with the IDF.

When asked about the possibility that Palestinian Police shot at the car, Gershon Mesika, head of the Samaria regional council, told Army Radio that Breslov Chassidim attempt to illegally enter Joseph’s Tomb almost every month. He added that Palestinian Police are familiar with the regular occurence, and would have no reason to shoot at visitors.

In February, Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein (Likud) on Thursday called on Defense Minister Ehud Barak to increase access to Joseph’s Tomb, located on the southern edge of Nablus, which has a waiting list of thousands of Jews wanting to make the pilgrimage.

At present, access to the tomb is limited to one nightly trip a month.

UPDATE 2:45AM EST: A security source on Sunday said a dispute had preceded the shooting incident in Nablus in which one Israeli was killed and several more were injured.

The argument involved a PA policeman who opened fire and the group of worshipers who arrived at the site.

The source said the Israeli worshipers arrived at the tomb without coordinating their visit with the IDF, as is standard request, and without army protection.

The PA policeman is being interrogated by Palestinian security officers at the time. The IDF is in touch with Palestinian security forces. and is waiting to hear more details about the incident.

UPDATE 3:06AM EST: The man killed in Sunday morning’s shooting incident at Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus has been identified as Ben-Yosef Livant, 24, from The Bais Yisroel neighborhood of Yerushalayim.

Livnat, a father of four, is Minister Limor Livnat’s nephew.

[Article from Yeshiva World News]