5 people shot, killed by gunman in Israel
JERUSALEM — A gunman on a motorcycle opened fire in a crowded city in central Israel late Tuesday, killing at least five people. The shooter was killed by police.
While circumstances were not immediately clear, the shooting appeared to be the latest in a string of attacks by Arab assailants ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the anniversary of last year’s Gaza war.
The previous two attacks, carried out by Arab citizens of Israel inspired by the Islamic State extremists group, have raised concerns of further violence.
Tuesday’s shootings occurred at two locations in Bnei Brak. A preliminary investigation found that the gunman was armed with an assault rifle and opened fire on passersby before he was shot by officers at the scene, police said in a statement.
The Magen David Adom paramedic service confirmed that five people were killed. Police said one of the victims was a police officer who arrived at the scene and engaged the shooter.
Israel “stands before a wave of murderous Arab terrorism,” declared Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. He pledged to combat it “with perseverance, stubbornness and an iron fist.” He held an emergency meeting of top security officials and planned a meeting of his Security Cabinet on Wednesday.
Israeli media reported that the suspected gunman was a 27-year-old Palestinian man from the town of Yabad. Police did not immediately provide information about the suspect.
Amateur video footage aired on Israeli television appeared to show a gunman in a black shirt shooting into a moving vehicle.
Earlier on Tuesday, Israeli security services raided the homes of at least 12 Arab citizens and arrested two suspected of having ties to the Islamic State in a crackdown sparked by recent deadly attacks.
Hours before the raid, Bennett
said the recent assaults inside Israel marked a “new situation” that required stepped-up security measures.
Law enforcement officials said 31 homes and sites were searched overnight in northern Israel, an area that was home to the gunmen who carried out the Hadera attack.
The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the two previous attacks.
Israeli leaders condemned the killings and pointed to the timing. Both attacks came ahead of Ramadan, which begins later this week, and as Israel hosted a high-profile meeting this week between the foreign ministers of four Arab nations and the United States.
All four Arab nations — Egypt, Morocco, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates — along with the United States, condemned the killings.
Ramadan is expected to begin Saturday. Last year, clashes between Israeli police and Muslim protesters during the holy month boiled over into an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza. Hamas praised the shooting as a “heroic operation,” but stopped short of claiming responsibility.
Israel has been taking steps to calm tensions with the Palestinians this year to avoid a repeat of violence. Deadly attacks by IS inside Israel, and attacks by Arab citizens of Israel, are rare.
The group operates mainly in Iraq and Syria, where it has recently stepped up attacks against security forces. It no longer controls any territory but operates through sleeper cells.
IS has claimed attacks against Israeli troops in the past and has branches in Afghanistan and other countries.