JERUSALEM: At least eight people were killed and ten others wounded in a shooting at a synagogue in Jerusalem on Friday night, Israeli media reported. While trying to escape, the security personnel shot the assailant.
The armed attack was claimed by the Palestinian Authority in the Neve Ya'akov neighborhood in Jerusalem. At least five people were confirmed dead at the scene. Five injured were taken to nearby hospitals in critical condition.
Fadi Ayesh, a resident of the Shuafat neighborhood in East Jerusalem and a member of Hamas, was named by police as the attacker. Ayesh fired a handgun at the Atret Avraham Synagogue before fleeing to the Beit Hanina neighborhood in Palestine.
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According to the Times of Israel, he allegedly opened fire on the responding police officers and was fatally shot in their retaliation.
After receiving information of the situation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly called a meeting for a "situational assessment" later that evening.
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According to the Jerusalem Post, opposition leader Yair Lapid expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and demanded that terrorism "be dealt with firmly."
Nine Palestinians were killed in clashes with Israeli troops in the Jenin refugee camp before the attack, which the Associated Press (AP) called "the deadliest West Bank raid in years".
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Gaza-based Palestinian rebels fired rockets into Israel after a gunfight on Thursday, while the Israeli army carried out airstrikes against the area.