This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgm1jl2g4lwo
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 2 | Version 3 |
---|---|
Israeli police say one killed in Haifa bus station knife attack | |
(about 7 hours later) | |
The attack took place at the HaMifratz Central train and bus station | The attack took place at the HaMifratz Central train and bus station |
An Israeli man has been killed and four other people have been wounded in what police say was a terrorist stabbing attack in the northern Israeli city of Haifa. | |
Police said an Israeli Druze man attacked civilians with a knife after getting off a bus at HaMifratz Central station. He was shot dead at the scene by a security guard. | |
The victim who died was named as Hassan Dahamsha, 70, from the predominantly Arab town of Kafr Kanna. Paramedics said three of the wounded - a 15-year-old boy, and a man and a woman in their 30s - were in a serious condition. | |
The attacker was from Shfaram, another mainly Arab town, and had recently returned from abroad, police said, without specifying a motive. | |
Israeli Druze leaders condemned the rare attack by a member of their community. | |
The Druze are an ethnic and religious group whose faith is an offshoot of Shia Islam. About 150,000 live in Israel and the occupied Golan Heights, comprising about 1.5% of the population. | The Druze are an ethnic and religious group whose faith is an offshoot of Shia Islam. About 150,000 live in Israel and the occupied Golan Heights, comprising about 1.5% of the population. |
Witnesses and security officials said the perpetrator of Monday morning's attack travelled to Haifa on a bus from Shfaram, which is about 10km (6 miles) east of the city. | |
"A bus arrived, and someone got off with a knife, shouted 'Allahu Akbar' ['God is greatest' in Arabic], and started stabbing people indiscriminately," one woman told the Haaretz newspaper. | |
A security officer was cited as saying the attacker stabbed three people waiting at the station and then went to a security checkpoint, where he stabbed an elderly man before being shot dead by the guard. | |
A police spokesman said the attacker had been abroad for the past few months and had returned to Israel in February. | |
Israeli media named him as Yitro Shaheen, 20, and reported that he had German citizenship and had lived in Germany. | |
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "My wife Sara and I send our deepest condolences to the family of the man who was murdered in the shocking terrorist attack in Haifa. | |
"We will continue to fight everywhere against those who seek to murder us and we will defeat them." | "We will continue to fight everywhere against those who seek to murder us and we will defeat them." |
The spiritual leader of Israel's Druze community, Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif, also condemned the attack. But he added: "Before passing judgment, it is important to wait for a thorough investigation and full clarification of the facts by the security forces." | |
Druze lawmaker Hamad Amar of the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party insisted that the attack "does not reflect the true spirit of the Druze community in Israel, which is a full partner in defending the state and its values". | |
Shfaram's mayor, Nahid Khazem, also said the town's residents were deeply shocked by the "despicable crime" in Haifa. | |
"His extended family say that he was mentally unstable, but I have no documents to confirm this," he told Haaretz. | |
There was no immediate claim from any armed groups, but Hamas described the attack as "heroic" and a "natural response" to what it called Israeli crimes against Palestinians. | There was no immediate claim from any armed groups, but Hamas described the attack as "heroic" and a "natural response" to what it called Israeli crimes against Palestinians. |
It comes amid deadlock between Hamas and Israel over moving forward with the six-week-old Gaza ceasefire deal. | It comes amid deadlock between Hamas and Israel over moving forward with the six-week-old Gaza ceasefire deal. |
Israel stopped aid from entering Gaza after Hamas rejected what Netanyahu's office said was a US proposal for an extension to the first phase, which ended on Saturday night. | Israel stopped aid from entering Gaza after Hamas rejected what Netanyahu's office said was a US proposal for an extension to the first phase, which ended on Saturday night. |
Hamas accused Israel of reneging on the deal and said the second phase should go ahead as agreed. | Hamas accused Israel of reneging on the deal and said the second phase should go ahead as agreed. |