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Shooting attack at Jerusalem holy site forces cancellation of Friday prayers Two Israeli police and three gunmen killed in shootout at holy site
(about 2 hours later)
Three gunmen have been shot dead during a shootout at the entrance to the flashpoint Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif complex in Jerusalem, during an attack in which two Israelis were critically wounded. Two Israeli police officers have been shot dead and three gunmen killed during an early-morning shootout in one of Jerusalem’s most holy and sensitive sites.
Some reports in the Israeli media suggested the attackers were Israeli Arabs, citizens of the town of Umm al-Fahm, although that was not immediately confirmed by police. The attack – involving three Israeli citizens of Palestinian origin – took place just after 7am in the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif complex in Jerusalem beginning near the Lion’s Gate entrance to the compound which is revered as a holy site by both Muslims and Jews.
In the immediate aftermath of the incident the area was cleared of visitors and closed, with police announcing that Muslim Friday prayers, usually attended by thousands, would be cancelled for the first time in 17 years. Confirmation of the death of the two male police officers who were wounded in the attack came a few hours after the incident from police chief Roni Alsheich.
According to initial reports by Israeli police, the three assailants, armed with two homemade Carlo submachine guns and a handgun, shot at several police officers near the Lion’s Gate entrance to the site, before running into the compound. The incident was among the most serious in Jerusalem in recent years and threatened to raise Israeli-Palestinian tensions.
“When they saw policemen they shot towards them and then escaped towards one of the mosques in the Temple Mount compound,” police spokesman Luba Samri said. “A chase ensued and the three terrorists were killed by police.” According to police, the three men – residents of the Israeli Arab town of Umm al-Fahm who were armed with home-made machine guns and a pistol – opened fire on police near the gate before fleeing back into the heart of the compound which houses the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock.
Dramatic footage of the incident showed the later part of the gun battle as it took place within the confines of the compound. The shaky video shows a number of figures dressed in dark clothes running across the compound and an exchange of gunfire before one of the apparent attackers falls to the ground. Israel’s Shin Bet security service later named the three attackers as Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed Jabareen, aged 29, Mohammed Hamed Abd Al-Latif Jabareen, 19, and Mohammed Ahmed Mafdal Jabareen, also 19, noting that none had previous security convictions.
At one stage, the footage appears to show one of the assailants on the ground, who leaps up again as police approach before being shot. As Israeli police pursued the men, a heavy exchange of gunfire took place, startling early-morning worshippers in the central plaza, some of whom recorded the shootout on camera phones.
Police said the three attackers were killed by security forces. The Israeli ambulance service Magen David Adom said two of the Israelis wounded were receiving life-saving treatment. In the immediate aftermath the compound was cleared of visitors and closed, with police announcing that Muslim Friday prayers, usually attended by thousands, would be cancelled for the first time in 17 years.
Israeli authorities are trying to identify the attackers, a police spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, said. The suspicion that they were Israeli citizens of Palestinian origin was raised by documents found on the bodies, including identity cards and a driving licence, which police were checking for authenticity. The two dead police officers were later named as Hael Sathawi, 30, and Kamil Shnan, 22.
The site, which houses the al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site, and the seventh-century Dome of the Rock, is also revered by Jews as the site of the historic Temple. Jews are permitted to visit but not pray at the site, a prohibition supported by the mainstream Jewish Halakhic tradition. It is managed under a long-standing arrangement with the Jordanian-supported Islamic institution known as the Waqf. The attack was condemned by the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, in a rare phone call to the Israeli president, Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the Palestinian Wafa news agency.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in the aftermath of the attack that he would not change prayer rights at the site, despite calls by far-right politicians who sought to exploit the shooting. Video footage recorded during the attack showed shooting and police running across the central plaza in pursuit of the attackers.
The deputy defence minister, Eli Ben Dahan of the far-right Jewish Home party, had called for Israel to “bolster its rule and control over the [holy sites], and to ensure that all Jews can pray there at any time in safety”. A second Jewish Home MP, Moti Yogev,said the compound should be “closed to Muslim [worshipers] for a long time”. At one point, one of the gunmen, who is seen lying on the ground apparently motionless, is seen jumping up, amid a fresh exchange of fire in which he falls.
A police spokesman described the beginning of the incident.
“When they saw policemen they shot towards them and then escaped towards one of the mosques in the Temple Mount compound,” said Luba Samri. “A chase ensued and the three terrorists were killed by police.”
The al-Aqsa mosque is Islam’s third-holiest site, while the seventh-century Dome of the Rock is also revered by Jews as the site of the historic Temple. Jews are permitted to visit the site but not pray there, a prohibition supported by the mainstream Jewish Halakhic tradition. It is managed under a longstanding arrangement with the Jordanian-supported Islamic institution known as the Waqf.
The last time the complex was closed off to Muslims was after the 2014 shooting of Jewish prayer rights activist Yehudah Glick, now a Knesset member for the Likud, while the last time Friday prayers were cancelled was in 1990.
Netanyahu said in the aftermath of the attack that he would not change prayer rights at the site, despite calls by far-right politicians who sought to exploit the shooting.
The deputy defence minister, Eli Ben-Dahan of the far-right Jewish Home party, had called for Israel to “bolster its rule and control over the [holy sites], and to ensure that all Jews can pray there at any time in safety”. A second Jewish Home MP, Moti Yogev,said the compound should be “closed to Muslim [worshippers] for a long time”.
Netanyahu rejected the calls. “It was decided to shut the Temple Mount today for security reasons. Searches will be carried out to ensure there are no more weapons at the [site]. The status quo on the Temple Mount will be preserved,” he said.Netanyahu rejected the calls. “It was decided to shut the Temple Mount today for security reasons. Searches will be carried out to ensure there are no more weapons at the [site]. The status quo on the Temple Mount will be preserved,” he said.
The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, told Palestinian news agencies he had been prevented him from entering the complex. “We insist on reaching Al-Aqsa mosque and performing prayers there. The occupation preventing us from praying marks an assault against our right to worship in this pure Islamic mosque,” he said. The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, told Palestinian news agencies he had been prevented him from entering the complex. “We insist on reaching al-Aqsa mosque and performing prayers there. The occupation preventing us from praying marks an assault against our right to worship in this pure Islamic mosque,” he said.
The incident precedes a reported move by the Israeli government to allow Israeli MPs, who are not allowed to go to the flashpoint site, to visit the Temple Mount on a trial basis.The incident precedes a reported move by the Israeli government to allow Israeli MPs, who are not allowed to go to the flashpoint site, to visit the Temple Mount on a trial basis.
Israel’s public security minister, Gilad Erdan, said: “The terror attack today is a severe and dire event in which all red lines have been crossed. The attack is still under investigation and will force us to look into existing security arrangements at Temple Mount and in its vicinity.Israel’s public security minister, Gilad Erdan, said: “The terror attack today is a severe and dire event in which all red lines have been crossed. The attack is still under investigation and will force us to look into existing security arrangements at Temple Mount and in its vicinity.
“I call on all public figures to do all in their power to calm the situation and keep the peace.”“I call on all public figures to do all in their power to calm the situation and keep the peace.”
A wave of Palestinian street attacks that began in 2015 has slowed but not stopped. Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 43 Israelis, two visiting Americans and a British tourist.A wave of Palestinian street attacks that began in 2015 has slowed but not stopped. Since September 2015, Palestinian attackers have killed 43 Israelis, two visiting Americans and a British tourist.
In that time, Israeli forces have killed more than 254 Palestinians, most of them said by Israel to be attackers.In that time, Israeli forces have killed more than 254 Palestinians, most of them said by Israel to be attackers.
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