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KFAR YONA: The Israeli military said eight soldiers were wounded on Thursday when a driver deliberately rammed his car into a bus stop in what police called a “terror attack.”

The army said two soldiers were “moderately injured” and six “lightly injured” in the attack at the Beit Lid junction near Kfar Yona in central Israel.

“The soldiers were evacuated to a hospital to receive medical treatment and their families have been notified,” it said in a statement.

There has been a spate of violence in Israel and the occupied West Bank since the start of the war against Hamas in Gaza, triggered by the Palestinian militants’ attack on October 7, 2023.

A teenager died in March this year when police said a car driven by a Palestinian man deliberately plowed into civilians at a bus stop in northern Israel.

One witness to Thursday’s ramming said the driver cut her off the road near Kfar Yona, then “turned his wheel to the right, full gas, as fast as he could, and hit as many people as he could.”

Kineret Hanuka, 45, told AFP: “I saw only blood and heard them screaming: ‘It hurts!’... It was so hard for me to see this.”

Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) first responders said they received a report at 9:25 am (0625 GMT) that a vehicle had crashed into a bus stop near Kfar Yona.

They said that the wounded had chest, limb and head injuries.

Israeli police spokesman Dedan Elsdunne described the incident as a “terror attack, where a terrorist rammed his vehicle into individuals who were standing here waiting to catch the bus.”

“He (the attacker) then attempted to flee. He abandoned his vehicle and fled from that location. We had large police forces who immediately arrived here, set up a perimeter so that we can locate this individual.”

The car was later recovered and the driver is being hunted using helicopters, motorbikes and a specialist dog unit, police added.

The site of the crash was cordoned off as forensic investigators combed the scene, AFP journalists reported.

In Israel, at least 32 people, including soldiers, have died in attacks by Palestinians since the start of the Gaza war, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

In the West Bank, occupied by Israel since 1967, at least 960 Palestinians, including many fighters but also civilians, have been killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers, according to Palestinian Authority figures.

At the same time, at least 36 Israelis, including civilians and soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations, Israeli figures showed.

ATHENS: Greece will deploy a salvage vessel in the Red Sea to assist in maritime accidents and protect seafarers and global shipping, the shipping minister said on Thursday, following attacks on two Greek vessels by Yemen’s Houthi militants this month.

Two Liberia-flagged, Greek-operated cargo ships, Magic Seas and Eternity C, sank off Yemen after repeated attacks by the Iran-aligned militant group.

The strikes on the two vessels marked a resumption of attacks on shipping by the Houthis, who struck more than 100 ships between November 2023 and December 2024 in what they said was a show of solidarity with the Palestinians in the war in Gaza.

Shipping Minister Vassilis Kikilias said the salvage vessel — called Giant and provided by the Hellenic Association of Tugboat Owners — would “support, protect and assist Greek-owned vessels and Greek seafarers.”

All of the crew members from the Magic Seas were rescued by a passing ship.

The crew of the Eternity C had to abandon the ship. Ten were rescued by a privately led mission, but five more are feared dead and the Houthis are believed to be holding another 10 crew members, maritime security sources have said.

Aspides, the European Union naval mission protecting shipping in the Red Sea, did not have assets in the area at the time of the incidents.

Giant is manned by a specialist crew of 14 Greek sailors, has four engines with 16,000 horsepower, and can sail in the most adverse weather conditions, the Shipping Ministry said.

It can participate in search and rescue operations, with accommodation for 40 people, help prevent marine pollution and also has firefighting capacity.