Army says suspected Hezbollah-linked suicide bomber shot dead in Israel

Israel’s army on Wednesday announced it killed a suspect wearing an explosive belt in the country’s north earlier this week, suggesting the possible involvement of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement.

“We are examining a possibility of the Hezbollah terrorist organization of being involved” with the suspected attacker who was shot dead on Monday, the army said.

The suspect was stopped in a car at one of the established border crossings in the north of Israel after an explosive device was detonated in the area, at the Meggido junction about 35 kilometers (22 miles) from Haifa.

The army said the suspect was believed to have been responsible for that explosion, which severely injured an Israeli civilian.

“He could have used the explosive belt in the first attack but chose not to,” the army said in a press briefing.

“Our assumption is that he was aiming to conduct another terrorist attack,” perhaps before committing suicide, it added.

The suspected attacker is believed to have asked a driver to pick him up to take him back toward the north of the country, according to the army.

The driver, whose identity was not revealed, is currently under interrogation, it added.