(JTA) — An Israeli soldier shot and killed an Israeli settler who failed to stop at a checkpoint.
Dan Mertzbach, a rabbi from Otniel, was killed early Friday morning in the southern Hebron region of the West Bank. Mertzbach was reportedly leaving his village when he failed to stop at a temporary checkpoint set up because of reports that a suspicious vehicle had been seen in the area.
Mertzbach reportedly did not notice the checkpoint or the soldiers’ attempts to flag him down. An Israel Defense Forces soldier opened fire on the vehicle, killing Mertzbach and wounding two other passengers.
After the shooting, a soldier was struck by a car as he tried to assess the damage. The soldier sustained moderate injuries.
Following a ceremony in Otniel, Mertzbach was buried late Friday in Jerusalem.
The IDF says it is conducting an investigation.
