Israel sees third civil shooting in a week, at least 5 killed

Israel saw its third civil attack in a week on Tuesday, which resulted in the death of at least five people. A gunman reportedly opened fire in central Israel and was later killed by law enforcement officials.

According to reports from AFP, two of the five people who were killed in the attack in Bnei Brak on Tuesday were Ukrainians. The identity of the individuals was not clear. One police officer was also killed while engaging with the attacker.

Local media reports suggested that the attacker was a Palestinian from the West Bank, the third Arab assailant to launch an attack ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The previous two attacks, carried out by Arab citizens of Israel inspired by the Islamic State extremist group, have raised concerns about further violence, according to reports from Associated Press.

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Footage aired by Israeli media shows a man in a black shirt, who is armed with an assault rifle, stopping a moving vehicle and shooting the driver. Another showed him chasing a cyclist, with the gun appearing to jam as he tried to fire.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who recently tested positive for COVID-19, said that he would tackle such acts with an “iron fist.”

Israel is facing a wave of murderous Arab terrorism…The security forces are at work. We will fight terrorism with persistence, diligence and an iron fist”, Bennett said in a statement.

“They will not move us from here. We will prevail,” the Israeli PM vowed, according to reports from PTI.

Israeli authorities have not yet determined whether the attacks were organized or whether the attackers acted individually. The Israeli military announced it would be deploying additional troops to the West Bank, and the police chief raised the national readiness level to its highest.