Israeli police kill man after Jerusalem attack
October 9, 2016
A shooting in Jerusalem on Sunday left several people wounded and two dead, the news agency AFP reported, citing an Israeli hospital. Police killed the suspected assailant, authorities said. The attack occurred near the city's police headquarters and a light-rail station, close to the line that segregated the mainly ethnically Palestinian East Jerusalem from the mostly Jewish western sector of the city.
"When the terrorist spotted the police, he fired at them," a spokeswoman for local security forces told news agencies on Sunday, "and they managed to shoot and kill him."
In the past year, a spate of attacks, mostly stabbings by men acting alone, have left about 35 soldiers, police officers and civilians dead in the city and surrounding areas. Israel's official response has led to the deaths of more than 200 Palestinians, suspected attackers among them, but many were also killed during protests.
US officials have criticized Israel's plans to expand settlements in areas with existing Palestinian populations, saying they would not help the lengthy regional peace process. Late last month, Israel lost former President Shimon Peres, remembered by many as one of the country's last executives to earnestly seek a resolution to the conflict, though he was no opponent of settlements.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, the main contenders for the US presidency, met with Israel's hawkish prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in September. Both have expressed unwavering support for Israel should they win.
mkg/jlw (Reuters, AFP, AP)