Jerusalem, 21 May, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Ballistic tests confirmed Wednesday that Nael Samara, who was killed by the Israeli soldiers on Saturday, was one of the terrorists who murdered Tzeela Gez. Samaria Council Head Yossi Dagan informed her husband, Hananel, of the findings shortly after they were received.
Samara was “running toward the forces while holding a backpack suspected of being booby-trapped” in the area of Bruchin, near where Gez was shot.
Tzeela Gez was shot while traveling with Hananel to the hospital to give birth to their fourth child. Their car came under fire near the Palestinian village of Burkin, and while two other vehicles managed to escape, theirs was hit directly. Tzeela, in the final month of her pregnancy, was critically wounded and later died. Their baby was delivered at the hospital in serious condition.
Hananel sustained minor injuries and was released the same day.
“This is only a fleeting consolation,” Dagan said after speaking with Hananel. “We are clearly not comforted by the fact that they killed the armed terrorist. The real fix is restoring deterrence and preventing the next attack.”
Calling Burkin a “hotbed of terror,” Dagan demanded a large-scale military operation in the village.
“As in Jenin and Tulkarm—so here too. The entire people of Israel are united in demanding a harsh response,” he said, adding that “the appropriate and true response” is to strengthen Israeli presence in Samaria.
On Tuesday morning, an unusual baby-naming ceremony was held at the Gez family home after morning prayers. The traditional circumcision ceremony, when Jewish boys are typically named, could not be performed due to the baby’s condition. Although the baby has not been circumcised, the family chose to go ahead with the naming. The baby was named Ravid Chaim, a name Tzeela had chosen before her death.
Ravid Chaim remains in serious condition at the Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel in Petah Tikva.
