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2023 Hamra junction shooting

SOLVED2014Hamra junction, Highway 57, West Bank3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

On 7 April 2023, unidentified assailants fired on a vehicle near the Hamra junction on Highway 57 in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The car carried three members of the British–Israeli Dee family from the Israeli settlement of Efrat: a 40-year-old mother and her two daughters, both in their twenties. The attack occurred amid a wider upsurge of violence in the region during April 2023, when Easter, Passover and Ramadan coincided, and followed other incidents including clashes at Al-Aqsa, cross-border shellings between Israel and Lebanon, and a car-ramming attack in Tel Aviv.

The Dee family had relocated from London to Israel in 2014 and settled in Efrat. The father, Leo Dee, a former rabbi, was traveling in a separate car with the couple's three other children and did not witness the attack. According to police, the incident was attributed to a suspected Palestinian gunman. Reports indicate the victims were shot a total of 22 times with a Kalashnikov assault rifle, first while the car was moving and then again at close range after it crashed. Both daughters were pronounced dead at the scene by Magen David Adom paramedics. The critically injured mother, Lucy Dee, was airlifted to Hadassah Ein Karem hospital in Jerusalem, where she later died. The three victims were buried in Kfar Etzion. Lucy Dee's organs were donated, reportedly saving the lives of five recipients.

The attack was condemned by Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, and by British Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis. Israeli Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtay stated that citizens with licensed weapons should carry them. In an unusual step for the UK government, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly wrote a letter to Rabbi Dee. Separately, CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour apologized on air on 7 May for having initially described the killings as a "shootout" rather than a shooting; Rabbi Dee rejected the apology and said he was considering legal action against the network. Hamas initially praised the attack but did not claim responsibility; the Al-Qassam Brigades did claim it.

In the aftermath, Israeli security forces killed three men during a raid in Nablus on 4 May 2023. Israeli authorities stated that two of the men were Hamas members suspected of carrying out the shooting and the third had allegedly assisted them. The Al-Qassam Brigades subsequently stated that the three men killed in the Nablus raid — named as Hassan Qatanani, Muath al-Masri and Ibrahim Jaber — were responsible for the shooting. On 29 October 2023, Israeli forces demolished Qatanani's apartment in the Askar refugee camp near Nablus. Two years after the killings, Leo Dee remarried.

Key facts

Victims
Rina Dee, Maia Dee, Lucy Dee, Leo Dee
Date
2014
Location
Hamra junction, Highway 57, West Bank
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2014

    The Dee family relocated from London to Israel and settled in the settlement of Efrat in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

  2. 2023-04-05

    The 2023 Al-Aqsa clashes occurred amid rising regional tensions.

  3. 2023-04-06

    The 2023 Israel–Lebanon shellings occurred.

  4. 2023-04-07

    Gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying three members of the Dee family near the Hamra junction on Highway 57; two daughters died at the scene and the mother, Lucy Dee, was critically injured. The 2023 Tel Aviv car-ramming attack also occurred the same day.

  5. 2023-04-10

    Lucy Dee died of her injuries after being airlifted to Hadassah Ein Karem hospital in Jerusalem.

  6. 2023-05-04

    Israeli security forces killed three men during a raid in Nablus, whom Israeli authorities said were responsible for or had assisted in the shooting.

  7. 2023-05-07

    CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour apologized on air for describing the killings as a "shootout" rather than a shooting.

  8. 2023-10-29

    Israeli forces demolished the apartment of Hassan Qatanani in the Askar refugee camp near Nablus.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Ibrahim Jaber

    CHARGED

    Named by the Al-Qassam Brigades as responsible for the shooting; killed by Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus on 4 May 2023 before facing formal prosecution.

  • Muath al-Masri

    CHARGED

    Named by the Al-Qassam Brigades as responsible for the shooting; killed by Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus on 4 May 2023 before facing formal prosecution.

  • Rina Dee

    VICTIM

    Daughter of Lucy Dee, in her twenties, killed at the scene of the shooting.

  • Maia Dee

    VICTIM

    Daughter of Lucy Dee, in her twenties, killed at the scene of the shooting.

  • Lucy Dee

    VICTIM

    40-year-old mother from Efrat, critically injured in the shooting and died days later at Hadassah Ein Karem hospital; her organs were donated to five recipients.

  • Hassan Qatanani

    CHARGED

    Named by the Al-Qassam Brigades as responsible for the shooting; killed by Israeli forces during a raid in Nablus on 4 May 2023 before facing formal prosecution.

  • Leo Dee

    VICTIM

    Husband of Lucy Dee and father of Maia and Rina Dee; was traveling in a separate vehicle with their three other children and did not witness the attack.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Hamra junction, Highway 57, West Bank

32.1954, 35.4558

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On 7 April 2023, gunmen opened fire on a car near the Hamra junction in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, killing a mother and her two adult daughters from the British–Israeli Dee family. The Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's armed wing, claimed responsibility.
Where did the shooting happen?
Hamra junction, Highway 57, West Bank.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
More cases in Palestinian Territories

Sources

  1. 2023 Hamra junction shootingwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Mother of British-Israeli sisters killed in West Bank shooting dies, Lucy Deenews · The Guardian · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage of the Hamra junction shootingnews · BBC News · 2026-07-07

Last verified JUL 2026