Israel’s defence minister consulted with senior commanders in the West Bank on Saturday, a day after a Palestinian stabbed to death three members of an Israeli family in their home and widespread Israeli-Palestinian clashes erupted over escalating tensions at a contested shrine.
The father of the 20-year-old Palestinian assailant said he believes his son was upset over the loss of Palestinian lives and wanted to protect the “honour” of the Jerusalem holy site.
Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said in his meeting with commanders that the attacker’s home would be demolished swiftly.
He called on Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to condemn the attack he described as a “slaughter.” Lieberman and army chief Lt Gen Gadi Eizenkot, visited the scene of the attack.
Earlier, the Israeli military said it sent more troops to the West Bank. Disputes over the shrine, revered by Muslims and Jews, have set off major rounds of Israeli-Palestinian confrontations in the past. They were also at the root of the current violence which began last week when Arab gunmen fired from the shrine, killing two Israeli policemen.
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