A Jordanian national was shot dead after he tried to stab police officers in Jerusalem and two Palestinians rammed their vehicle into a bus stop in the West Bank, wounding three Israeli civilians before they were shot, Israeli police and military said Friday.
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That attack came at the Damascus Gate entrance to east Jerusalem’s tourist-heavy Old City, the main entrance for Palestinians. It was not immediately clear whether he held Jordanian nationality.
Unconfirmed reports said police had “shot and neutralised” the man, thought to be a 28-year-old Jordanian, when he ran at them. Troops on the ground said he was trying to run them over before they opened fire on the auto.
Since October 2015, 220 Palestinians, 34 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have died, according to an AFP count.
A police statement said a “terrorist” had been shot dead by an officer after he attempted to stab her.
Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the assailant in Jerusalem “was running towards police officers with a knife in his hand and was shot and killed”.
Palestinian leaders say assailants have acted out of desperation over the collapse of peace talks in 2014 and Israeli settlement expansion in Israeli-occupied territory that Palestinians seek for an independent state.
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Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, according to Israeli authorities.
