Prisoner shot dead in Israel while leaving for work — Jerusalem Post

In northern Israel, 37-year-old prisoner Eyal Heib was shot dead in the morning after being allowed to leave prison to go to work as part of a rehabilitation program. The attack occurred near the Nahal Tzalmon interchange on Highway 65, The Jerusalem Post reports.

Attack near a bus stop

Heib was serving an 18-year sentence following a conviction in a 2014 manslaughter case. He was walking to a bus stop to travel to a factory in the north of the country and was due to return to prison by public transport after his shift ended.

According to the publication, a car stopped next to the man and gunfire was opened from it. Heib sustained severe injuries and died at the scene. A report of the shooting was received by the Magen David Adom ambulance service dispatch center at 6:41 a.m. Medics found the man unconscious on the sidewalk near the stop with penetrating wounds.

Police launched a search for the suspects and opened an investigation. Law enforcement classified the shooting as criminally motivated.

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Killing against the backdrop of a long-running conflict

In 2014, Heib was convicted in the case involving the death of Ali Hasarma. According to the indictment materials, which he admitted as part of a plea deal, Heib ambushed Hasarma in the Tal-El forest and shot him at close range. He was initially charged with murder, but due to evidentiary problems, the charge was reduced to manslaughter. He was also found guilty of weapons-related offenses and conspiracy.

The publication links Heib's death to a long-running conflict between two branches of the Hasarma family from the Galilean city of Ba'ana. The confrontation began after a dispute between teenagers in 2014 and, according to The Jerusalem Post, has claimed the lives of 20 people, including people who did not bear the Hasarma surname. Before this, the latest killings linked to the conflict occurred in 2023.

Other attacks in the north of the country

The previous evening, 22-year-old Yousef Hammad was killed in a shooting in Tamra, while another man sustained moderate injuries. About three hours later, 25-year-old Mahmoud al-Jamal was shot dead in Baqa al-Gharbiyye; four more people were injured. Police did not report any connection between these incidents and Heib's killing.