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Palestinian assailant killed in Jerusalem stabbing attack

Xinhua, December 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

A Palestinian assailant was killed after stabbing and wounding an Israeli policeman in Jerusalem on Thursday afternoon, the Israeli police said.

The latest stabbing attack happened near the Damascus Gate, the entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem, in which the policeman was moderately wounded in his limbs, police said.

Police at the scene shot and killed the Palestinian assailant.

It's the second Palestinian attack on Thursday against Israelis.

Earlier on Thursday morning, a Palestinian man opened fire at the Hizme checkpoint in the West Bank, north of Jerusalem, seriously injuring a 47-year-old Israeli. An Israeli soldier was also wounded lightly.

The Palestinian shooter was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers at the scene.

Palestinian media outlets reported that the assailant was 37-year-old Mazen Hassan Aribah from Abu Dis, a Palestinian village east of Jerusalem, who served as an officer in the Palestinian Authority's security forces.

Nineteen Israelis, including a U.S. national and a Palestinian man, have been killed during the past two months in stabbing, shooting and vehicular attacks perpetrated by Palestinians.

More than 100 Palestinians have been killed, some in clashes with Israeli security forces, while others were gunned down by Israeli security forces and vigilante citizens for allegedly trying to carry out attacks.

Palestinians and Israeli human rights groups charge that the Israeli authorities have been using excessive force in subduing Palestinian attackers, after they no longer pose as a threat.

The current wave of violence was initially sparked by strife over the status of the al-Aqsa compound in east Jerusalem, which is holy to both Jews and Muslims. The tension later spread into full-blown violence throughout the country and the Palestinian territories.

The Palestinians charge that the violence is also stoked by the 50-year Israeli occupation of the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip territories, where the Palestinians wish to establish a state in accordance with the two-state solution. Endit