According to local police, the perpetrator was shot and killed but local media reports suggest that the police forces also shot a foreign national after mistaking him for the assailant.
The Sunday attack became one of the most serious incidents amid the ongoing tensions between Israel and Palestine.
Deputy Director for Program Affairs at the Palestinian Center for Human Rights Hamdi Shaqqura spoke in an exclusive interview to Sputnik, saying, “I am based in Gaza but we monitor the situation in Jerusalem as well, and what we have seen so far is an extensive military presence so far. It is more of Israeli militarization than addressing the real causes. More people have been killed or injured for participating in demonstrations.”
He went on to explain that in the cases of Palestinians stabbing or trying to attack, instead of stopping them the Israeli Forces kill them in the street immediately.
“Such atrocities include people bleeding to death on the street and that is against international law because even in military clashes after a person is wounded it is the responsibility of the other party to call an ambulance.”
Speaking to Jerusalem Post, Israel’s Deputy Defense Minister Eli Ben-Dahan called for the country’s government to expel the families of terrorists. He stressed that this is the only step that will prevent further terrorist attacks.
Earlier Israeli security forces imposed tighter restrictions in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Over the past month, eight Israelis have been killed in attacks by Palestinians, while more than 40 Palestinians, including several attackers, have been killed by Israeli security forces.
Yoram Schweitzer, an expert in international terrorism and head of the Institute for National Security Studies Program on Terrorism and Low Intensity Conflict, spoke to Sputnik regarding the escalating tensions in the region.
“Behind the security situation there is a historical and political background. The local incidents and growing tensions feed one another and then erupt. When there is a ‘tsunami’ of terrorism you have to block it. These walls are trying to help the security forces to stop the violence.”
He went on to say that there is a need for political initiatives from both the sides. “Both sides look at each other with great suspicion but they need to resist it and overcome the barriers.”
He said that there needs to be a fair mediator in the situation. “There is no span of attention for citizens if they are afraid to go out on the streets. So firstly the ‘tsunami’ of attacks needs to be stopped.”
