The father and brother of Tel Aviv shooting perpetrator Nashat Milhem are set to be released to house on Sunday, the family’s attorney said, less than a week after they were arrested on suspicion of being accomplices to the gunman.
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The Palestinian Authority initially declined to list the Melhelm, who is an Israeli citizen, on the list of Palestinians killed by Israeli security forces during the recent wave of terror, the report said.
Milhem killed two people outside the Simta bar last Friday, before he went on to murder a cab driver whose taxi he hailed to make his escape.
Milhem, 29, was described as an Arab Israeli with a history of violence and instability whose relatives notified the police after recognizing him on CCTV footage shown after the shooting. At the time of the attack, 25 Israelis have been killed, mostly in stabbings, shootings and car-ramming attacks, while 138 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, most of whom were identified by Israel as “assailants”, within a three-month period.
Melhem had been on the run since January 1, when he allegedly fired on customers in a Tel Aviv bar at random, killing two. Many residents of Tel Aviv, the focus of the searches, had said they were staying indoors and refusing to send their children to school for fear Melhem would strike again in the city.
He emerged from that building and began “shooting in the direction of our forces and was immediately shot and killed”, added Rosenfeld, who said no Israeli forces died or suffered injuries in the exchange.
He was killed in a shootout with police counter-terrorism (YAMAM) forces at around 4:20pm local time, Ynet news reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the state’s forces for “acting relentlessly, methodically, and professionally to locate and neutralize the terrorist”, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.
The unusual slayings a week ago and the fact that the killer remained at large had concerned Israelis, and authorities aimed to deflect public criticism of the investigation. His motive remains unclear.
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Channel 2 TV news said Melhem was caught thanks to neighbors who informed the security forces of his presence.
