‘Torment is coming to you’: New Palestinian terror group emerges in Samaria

The group is named after a terrorist who murdered a 19-year-old soldier and a father of 12.

By World Israel News Staff

The establishment of a new Palestinian terror group based in the city of Salfit in Samaria was announced Sunday evening, The Jerusalem Post reported.

The group, named Battalion of Martyr Omar Abu Laila, after a terrorist who murdered IDF Sgt. Gal Keidan, 19, and Rabbi Achiad Ettinger in March 2019, said in a statement that its “soldiers were preparing many surprises that would shake the brutal [Israeli] entity,” the report said.

“Torment is coming to you,” the group warned Israelis. “The Battalion will stay and expand in Salfit and its [surrounding] villages.”

The Battalion is among several small terror groups consisting of dozens of terrorists operating in cities in northern Samaria known as hotbeds of terror, such as Jenin and Nablus (Shechem), as well as in other Palestinian-administered areas, including Bethlehem and Hebron in Judea. Members hail from various factions, including Fatah, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, according to the Post.

Abu Laila stabbed Keidan to death at the Ariel Junction in Samaria, stole his weapon and then opened fire on passing cars. He shot Rabbi Ettinger, a father of 12, who died the following day of his wounds.

Following a manhunt, Abu Laila was killed in a shootout with Israeli soldiers.

The Palestinian Authority honored Abu Laila months after he carried out the deadly attack, naming a street, a square and a mosque after him, Palestinian Media Watch reported at the time. The PA has also referred to Abu Laila as “more honorable than [the rest] of us,” deeming him a “perfect human being.”