Three Israelis were killed and 16 wounded after two Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a crowded bus stop in Jerusalem. Video showed the attackers getting out of a car on a highway and shooting at people with a rifle and a pistol. Off-duty soldiers and a civilian at the scene killed the gunmen. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack and said its members were involved as part of a response to Israeli “crimes” in Gaza and elsewhere.
What Happened in Jerusalem?
The attack occurred hours after the Palestinian armed group, designated as a terrorist organization by Israel and the United States, agreed with the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to extend a ceasefire in Gaza for the seventh day and allow another exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Tel Aviv as part of efforts to prolong the pause in the devastating war, sparked by Hamas’s deadly attack on Israel on October 7.
On Thursday morning, Blinken met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who told him that the Jerusalem shooting was another example of “the endless war we are waging against terrorist organizations, especially Hamas, in these very complicated and challenging.” Blinken said the attack was a reminder “of the threat of terrorism that Israel and Israelis face every day.” Israeli police said they received reports of gunshots at the Givat Shaul intersection, on the main road from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, at around 7:40 a.m. this morning. “A car approached with two armed terrorists, one with an M16 rifle and the other with a pistol,” Jerusalem District Commander Doron Turgeman told reporters at the scene.
“At a bus stop, they opened fire on the people waiting there. “The quick response of two soldiers and a civilian, who were near the stop, neutralized the attackers.” Later, officers searching the gunmen’s vehicle found a large amount of ammunition.
Moshe Hemed, a paramedic with the Magen David Adom (MDA) ambulance service, was one of the people who helped at the scene. “I saw several people injured. Some were lying down and others were walking. Together with a large number of MDA teams, we evaluate and treat them. Unfortunately, we had to declare a 24-year-old woman deceased and evacuate eight other people injured in various conditions to hospitals in the city.” Police later announced that two other victims of the attack had died and three more were in serious condition in hospital.
This story was written in Spanish by Miguel Fernandez in Cultura Colectiva
