Palestinian stabbers kill Israeli, assailants shot dead

An Israeli police spokesperson said border police officers on patrol in the area had noticed a civilian running in panic towards them and then saw two men stabbing a man. The officers opened fire at the assailants and “neutralised” them, the spokesperson added. Two others were taken to Jerusalem hospitals in serious condition, according to reports.

Israeli security forces shot dead two Palestinians who had gone on a stabbing spree along a popular walkway in Jerusalem on Wednesday in what police described as a terrorist attack.

A third Israeli was accidently shot and killed by a policewoman who had rushed to the scene from the nearby Jaffa gate entrance to the old city.

Palestinian security sources said the alleged attacker’s body was being held by Israeli authorities, and they had not yet been able to identify him. Samri says police shot both assailants. One was reportedly killed and the other badly injured.

Israeli forces killed four Palestinian assailants in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the army said, as a 12-week surge in street violence showed no sign of abating.

The attack at the Old City’s Jaffa Gate came at a time of increased visits to the Holy Land for the Christmas season. He is said to have tried to attack Israeli soldiers with a screwdriver, but no injuries among Israelis have been reported.

Palestinian leaders point to frustration over a near 50-year Israeli occupation on the West Bank and no progress on a Palestinian state.

Nearly daily stabbings, shootings and car-rammings by Palestinians have killed 20 Israelis and a US citizen since October.

In recent weeks, Israeli authorities have arrested a number of suspected Jewish extremists over the July 31 firebombing in the West Bank village of Duma, though no one has been charged. The remainder were killed during clashes with Israeli forces.