On Tuesday, two Palestinians suspected of abducting and killing three Israeli teenagers in June were killed in a shootout with Israeli forces in the West Bank, Israeli army Lt. Col. Peter Lerner announced.
The abduction triggered a manhunt for the perpetrators and the arrest of hundreds of Hamas activists; ultimately, it was also what sparked the summer war in Gaza. The bodies of Gilad Shaar, Naftali Frenkel, and Eyal Yifrach were found three weeks after their kidnapping, and authorities arrested the suspected ringleader. The men thought to have actually been behind the abduction and murders, Marwan Qawasmeh and Amer Abu Aisheh, remained on the loose until being killed in the shootout, Lerner said.