Jackals (illustration)
Jackals (illustration)Flash 90

After a lengthy pursuit, a potentially rabid jackal that attacked 12 hikers near Tiberias and Lake Kinneret was shot to death on Thursday.

"We reached Gan Harusim and chased it up till Migdal," said United Hatzalah medic Yossi Vaknin to the radio station Kol Rega. "(The jackal) attacked a girl and her father at the guest house in Ginosar; the father tried to help."

Vaknin recalled the dangerous hunt, noting "we went to search for the jackal, and it tried to attack us; we shot and killed it."

The attacks have raised fears among residents of the Tiberias region that the jackal may have been rabid, explaining its violent behavior and fearlessness towards humans.

Three people attacked by the jackal arrived at the Poria Health Center, where they were given immunizations against rabies and tetanus shots, after which they were sent home.

Five others arrived with scratches from the jackal, and similarly received the needed medical treatment.

The Health Ministry has warned residents and hikers in the region of the danger, calling on anyone who came into contact with an animal exhibiting suspicious behavior, or who owns an animal that came into contact with wild animals in the area, to contact the Tiberias Health Office at 04-6710300.