- At least five people have been injured in a suspected terrorist attack in Tel Aviv, Israel, and one person has died.
- The attack comes after a tense and bloody week in the region, which saw a deadly shooting near Hamra Junction and two raids on the al-Aqsa Mosque, prompting retaliatory rocket fire from Gaza and Lebanon.
The Israeli military has been mobilized in response to a suspected terrorist attack that injured at least five tourists and killed another in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Friday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Israel Defense Forces to mobilize more units to deal with the car attack and another deadly shooting that took place earlier in the day. He has also ordered the Israeli police to call in reserve border police units.
On Friday, the Magen David Adom Ambulance Service said one person was killed and at least five people were injured in a car attack that took place on Kaufmann Street, the Time of Israel reported The murdered victim has been identified as an Italian citizen. The injured victims, who are also tourists, have been transferred to the Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv and the Wolfson Hospital in Holon.
Police say the suspected terrorist was shot and killed by officers who saw the attacker try to get a gun in his car after driving over to the tourists.
“The police officer approached the car together with the Tel Aviv Municipality inspectors and realized that the driver was trying to get a weapon that he had in his possession. The police officer and the inspectors neutralized the terrorist,” Israel Police tweeted.
The incident comes after a tense and bloody week for Israel and Palestine and just hours after another shooting near Hamra Junction, in which two British-Israeli sisters were shot dead and their mother she was seriously injured in the north of the Jordan Valley. They were in a car that crashed after being shot. Officials are still looking for the suspected terrorists, who fled the scene.
Tensions in the region rose after Israeli police stormed the al-Aqsa mosque, a site important to both Islam and Judaism and located in Jerusalem, twice this week, storming the compound and arresting hundreds of Palestinians as they offered prayers for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. This year, Ramadan coincides with the Jewish Passover.
The raids have not only drawn condemnation from the Arab and Muslim world, but also led to retaliatory rocket fire from militants in Gaza. The exchange of fire across the border between Lebanon and Israel is the largest since the 2006 war between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah guerrilla group.
Earlier in the day, before the attack and drive-by shooting, Israeli warplanes carried out airstrikes in southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip as part of rising tensions in the area.
Newsweek The Magen David Adom Service and the Israeli government were contacted for comment by email.
