Nearly 42 people have been arrested for questioning after Friday’s deadly attack near a synagogue in East Jerusalem, Israeli police said Saturday. On Friday evening, a 21-year-old Palestinian man shot and killed seven people near a synagogue in East Jerusalem during Shabbat prayers, before being shot dead after a chase.
42 people have been arrested for questioning after Friday’s deadly attack near a synagogue in East Jerusalem, Israeli police said Saturday. On Friday evening, a 21-year-old Palestinian man shot and killed seven people near a synagogue in East Jerusalem during Shabbat prayers, before being shot dead after a chase.
“Police have arrested 42 suspects for questioning, some of whom are family members of the terrorist,” police said in a statement. Others among the arrested suspects live in her neighborhood in East Jerusalem, she added. In a separate statement, police said Israeli forces had been placed on “high alert”.
“One of the worst attacks in recent years”
The shooting occurred in Neve Yaakov, a Jewish settlement neighborhood in East Jerusalem, part of the Holy City annexed by Israel. Police Chief Kobi Shabtai spoke of ‘one of the worst attacks’ suffered by Israel in recent years”. After the attack Friday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised ‘immediate action’ , without further details, and called on the Israelis not to take justice into their own hands but to rely on the army and the police.
The shooting came a day after an Israeli army raid in Jenin, in the northern occupied West Bank, which claimed the lives of nine Palestinians.