Israel vows to expose perpetrators of West Bank attack, accuses Iran-linked hacker group of cyber sabotage

On June 27, in a phone call with his US counterpart Antony Blinken, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen affirmed that the perpetrators involved in the attack in the West Bank will be brought to justice.

The surge in violence in the West Bank is prompting Israeli officials to urgently search for the perpetrators. (Source: Getty Images)

Mr Cohen also accused Iran of secretly funding the Lion's Den extremist group and masterminding attacks from the West Bank on Israelis.

For his part, Mr. Blinken said that the US expressed concern about the attacks in the West Bank and urged Israel to prevent violence.

In another development, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just convened a closed-door meeting with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the commander of the Israeli army (IDF) and the Internal Security Agency (Shin Bet) to assess the situation of violence in the West Bank.

Participants in the meeting criticized Mr. Ben-Gvir for his tacit support for recent attacks on Palestinians. In turn, Mr. Ben-Gvir accused these officials of “exaggerating” the issue.

On the same day, Director General of the Israel National Cyber Central Authority (INCD) Gaby Portnoy accused hacker groups linked to Iran of carrying out sabotage against civilian targets in many countries.

Speaking at the annual Cyber Week event at Tel Aviv University, Portnoy said Israel is well aware of the hacking groups’ illegal intrusions and is working to neutralize their efforts. Israeli officials also warned of punishment for any elements carrying out cyberattacks against Israeli citizens.

According to Mr. Portnoy, over the past year, Israel has improved its defense and recovery capabilities after each cyber attack, and has stopped the majority of attacks.

Recently, important Israeli infrastructure units such as Hadera Hospital, Check Point cybersecurity company, and Technion Institute of Technology have suffered many large-scale cyber attacks, causing serious damage and leaving long-lasting consequences.

Iran has yet to respond to Israel's statement.

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