Palestinians carried out two stabbing attacks in Jerusalem on Saturday before being shot dead by police, the latest in a series of assaults against civilians and soldiers in Israel and the West Bank.
In the first incident, a 16-year-old Arab stabbed two Israelis who were walking from the Old City toward the city center, said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld. Police, who saw the men bleeding from stab wounds in their upper bodies and the knife-wielding Palestinian running toward them, opened fire, killing the attacker. The two victims were lightly wounded and evacuated to the hospital, Rosenfeld said.
later, just outside the Old City, another Palestinian attacker stabbed two police officers, one in the neck. Rosenfeld said other police forces opened fire and killed the attacker, but also wounded one of their own in the process. In all, three officers were evacuated to hospital, one in serious condition.
The wave of attacks started in Jerusalem weeks ago and is linked to tensions over a sensitive holy site in the Old City that is sacred to Jews and Muslims. The attacks have since spread to the rest of Israel, while violent protests have erupted in the West Bank and along the Gaza border, where seven Palestinians were killed on Friday.
A rocket was fired from Gaza into southern Israel overnight, without causing any casualties or damage. Rosenfeld said police in an Arab east Jerusalem neighborhood also came under attack overnight and responded with gunfire, hitting a 25-year-old. Health officials later confirmed the man had died of his wounds. Violent protests resumed after the man’s funeral, with rocks and firebombs hurled toward police, who responded with fire and lightly wounded two people.
Protests also took place in the West Bank city of Ramallah, with demonstrators hurling rocks at Israeli troops who responded with tear gas. In the West Bank city of Hebron, thousands took part in two funeral processions for Palestinians who were killed while carrying out attacks in recent days.