Police and Shin Bet now confirm that Wednesday's stabbing incident in Lod was a nationalist terror attack. According to investigators, the assailant first tried to enter a closed mosque, then headed toward city hall. Special police units cornered him; he drew a knife, attempted to stab an officer, and was shot and neutralized. A mental-health background check is also underway.
Police and Shin Bet confirmed Wednesday afternoon that the stabbing incident in Lod earlier that day has been classified as a nationalist terror attack, upgrading the investigation from an initial suspicion. The Zioneer reported at 13:56 Jerusalem that a civilian had spotted a suspect with a knife near a school, and by 15:57 had confirmed the assailant's neutralization and identification as Sami Ahmad Jassus, with no Israeli casualties. Wednesday's timeline, as confirmed by the police, is: the assailant first attempted to enter a closed mosque, then proceeded toward the municipality building; when officers moved to detain him, he fled; a special police unit (YSM) cornered him, he drew a knife and tried to stab a fighter, and was shot and neutralized — consistent with prior versions reported by The Zioneer throughout the day. The police note that a mental-health background check of the suspect is also being conducted alongside the security investigation, a detail that may inform the broader assessment but does not alter the terror designation.
The Zioneer reported on Wednesday at 10:20 Jerusalem that initial police reports framed the incident as a terror attack, with the suspect believed to be a non-resident Arab. By 10:20, the assailant was identified as Sami Ahmad Ja'asus, 28, a Lod resident with a prior criminal record for weapons offenses — contradicting earlier suggestions he was an infiltrator. Subsequent reports at 10:20 detailed the sequence: the suspect was spotted near the municipal complex, fled on foot, was cornered by YASAM officers, and was shot after attempting to stab them. The identification and timeline were corroborated across multiple newsrooms, with the Shin Bet's involvement confirmed by 10:20. The police confirmation at 15:57 (the source of this update) provided the official terror classification.
As The Zioneer reported on June 29, Hezbollah operatives had attempted to target Israeli soldiers on the northern border earlier that week, though no details on location or outcome were available. In a separate incident on June 5, a court extended the remand of Tamer Kiwan, suspected of attempting to stab a police officer near the Kafr Yasif police station — a case also investigated as a suspected terrorist attack.
The police confirmation provides the official terror classification, and the mental-health background check remains ongoing. The incident is closed with no Israeli casualties.
9 developments
- StrongPolice: citizen reported suspect with knife near school in Lod; all leads probed
- DevelopingSuspect in Kafr Yasif officer stabbing attempt remanded
- StrongStabbing attacker shot after trying to stab policewoman near Israeli town
- DevelopingIndictment filed against Tamer Kiwan for attempted stabbing of Border Police officer in Kafr Yasif
Source and signal
- Internal intake