Jerusalem shooting: Seven dead after horrific terror attack at synagogue on Holocaust Memorial Day
RONEN ZVULUN
Seven people have been killed and 10 injured after a shooting at a synagogue in Jerusalem on Holocaust Memorial Day.
Israeli police described it as a "terrorist incident” and said it took place in a synagogue in Neve Ya'akov.
Israeli media said the gunman was a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem but there was no official confirmation.
RONEN ZVULUN
Police said the gunman arrived at around 8.15pm and opened fire, hitting a number of people before he was killed by police.
Israeli media said the gunman was a Palestinian resident of East Jerusalem but there was no official confirmation.
Israel's foreign office said seven people had been killed in the shooting.
The attack has already been condemned by the US, U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said: “This is absolutely horrific. Our thoughts, prayers and condolences go out to those killed by this heinous act of violence. We condemn this apparent terrorist attack in the strongest terms. Our commitment to Israel's security remains ironclad,”
Israel's foreign office said seven people had been killed but the ambulance service put the number of dead at five.
RONEN ZVULUN
It comes just one day after a Israeli raid in the West Bank, increasing fears of an escalation in violence after months of clashes in the West Bank which resulted in a raid on Thursday that killed at least nine Palestinians.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, which took place as worshippers attended Sabbath services on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, but a spokesman for the Islamist movement Hamas said the incidents were connected.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said: "This operation is a response to the crime conducted by the occupation in Jenin and a natural response to the occupation criminal actions,"