The Israeli army said that the body of an Israeli teenager who was kidnapped by terrorists from a hospital in the West Bank was returned to Israel early Thursday morning, averting a possible major crisis.
“After efforts by the security establishment in coordination with the Palestinian Authority, the body of the young Israeli citizen Tiran Ferro, who was killed in a car accident in Jenin, is now being transferred to his family in Israel,” the Israeli army said in a statement.
Ferro, 18, from the predominantly Druze town of Daliat al-Karmel, was seriously injured in a car accident in Jenin and taken to a hospital in the Palestinian city on Tuesday due to his serious condition.
His family claims that Palestinian gunmen disconnected him from life support and took him from the hospital, while initial reports indicated that he was already dead when he was taken away.
His body was returned to his family in Israel after terrorists held it in the West Bank for nearly 30 hours. The body was taken at the Salem crossing near Jenin.
“The whole family is very grateful to everyone who contributed to the process of resolving this crisis and returning Tiran’s body so that we can bid him farewell in a dignified manner,” said Fero’s uncle.
Various Israeli media reports indicated that intensive negotiations were underway on Wednesday evening to secure the release of Ferro’s body, with the participation of those at the highest levels of government and the security establishment in both Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Channel 13 said that Israel had sought a diplomatic solution to the crisis but was preparing a military operation to recover the body.
Prime Minister Yair Lapid said Wednesday that “if Tiran’s body is not returned, the kidnappers will pay a heavy price.”
Unnamed security officials said the suspects were demanding the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel or the bodies of dead Palestinian terrorists held by Israel in exchange for Ferro, who was a high school student.
Tiran Ferro’s father, Hussam, speaks to the media after Palestinian gunmen kidnapped his son from a hospital in Jenin, November 23, 2022. (Shir Torem/Flash90)
The Kan public broadcaster quoted Palestinian officials as saying that there was a possible breakthrough in talks to return Ferro’s body on Wednesday evening, but that Israeli officials rejected any request for a prisoner exchange deal.
Terrorists further inflame tensions Two bombs exploded in Jerusalem An Israeli boy was killed and more than 20 others injured, Wednesday morning.
Ferro kidnapped It angered the Druze community in Israel. On Wednesday, thousands demonstrated in Daliat al-Karmel, Fero’s hometown, at a protest rally that blocked a major highway.
More than one member of the community, according to the Walla news site, said that if Ferro’s body was not returned soon, they might have tried to enter Jenin and retrieve it themselves.
Channel 12 published a video clip of five masked men carrying rifles and threatening to go to Jenin to retrieve the body if it was not returned Thursday morning.
One of the demonstrators said: This is the first step. We will turn the country upside down.”
Delegate to Carmel???? pic.twitter.com/v4yyKf3whB
– Real News IL (@RealNewsIL) November 23, 2022
While initial reports from the Israeli military and Palestinian media indicated that Ferro had indeed died when unidentified gunmen kidnapped him, his uncle’s comments on Wednesday morning suggested otherwise.
“They were shooting in the air and shouting in Arabic… No one dared stop them. They cut him off from the machines and threw him into a car,” Edri Ferro told Kan.
Idri said that Tiran “traveled to Jenin to fix his car with a friend,” and was involved in a car accident, adding that he “must have lost control of the car on the way there.”
Several Palestinian sources had indicated that Tiran’s body was being held in the Jenin refugee camp. The Palestinians erected barricades around the city in anticipation of an Israeli army raid.
A Palestinian throws stones at an Israeli military vehicle after a deadly operation in the West Bank city of Jenin, September 28, 2022 (AP/Majdi Mohammed)
On Wednesday morning, the Coordinator of Military Liaison with the Palestinians, the coordinator of military coordination in the Palestinian territories, announced the closure of the Al-Jalama and Salem military checkpoints in the northern West Bank. The crossings reopened on Thursday morning.
The Jenin area is seen as a major hotspot for terrorism in recent months and it is believed that the Palestinian Authority is losing control of the area.
Palestinian militants, mostly in the northern West Bank, have frequently targeted forces conducting raids, as well as military posts and soldiers operating along the security barrier in the West Bank, Israeli settlements, and civilians on the roads.
The Jenin incident came as the army continues its major anti-terror offensive focused mostly on Jenin and Nablus, to deal with a series of Palestinian attacks that have left 30 dead in Israel and the West Bank since the beginning of the year. .
The operation resulted in more than 2,000 arrests in near-night raids, but also left more than 130 Palestinians dead, many – but not all – while carrying out attacks or during clashes with security forces.
The bombings in Jerusalem also caused tension in the country. Police have beefed up their forces in Jerusalem and other parts of the country while hunting down terrorists who planted explosives at two bus stops in the capital.
Yeshiva student Aryeh Shobak, 16, was killed and 22 people were injured in the two attacks, one listed as critical and three others in serious and moderate condition, according to medical officials.
“Lifelong food lover. Avid beeraholic. Zombie fanatic. Passionate travel practitioner.”