Murder of Hallel Yaffa Ariel

Murder of Hallel Yaffa Ariel
LocationKiryat Arba, West Bank
Date30 June 2016
TargetCivilians
Attack type
Stabbing
WeaponsKnife
Deaths1 (plus 1 perpetrator)
Injured1
PerpetratorMohammad Tra'ayra
MotiveLone-wolf terrorism

On 30 June 2016, a 17-year-old Palestinian male broke into a home in the Israeli settlement of Kiryat Arba and stabbed to death Hallel Yaffa Ariel a thirteen year old Israeli-American citizen in her bedroom. The attacker was then fatally shot by security guards. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed "incitement-driven terrorists" while the U.S. State Department condemned the "outrageous terrorist attack".

Yaffa Ariel was the youngest Israeli victim in the stabbing attacks during the 2015–2016 wave of violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.