A 19-year-old Palestinian terrorist from east Jerusalem stabbed two police officers with a knife at the Lion's Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem early Sunday morning.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Other officers at the scene opened fire and killed the attacker. Medics that arrived at the scene pronounced him dead.
The officers sustained light-to-moderate wounds and were vacated to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Israel Police Jerusalem District Commander Doron Turgeman also arrived at the scene and was convening a situational assessment.
The Hamas terrorist organization hailed the attack.
"The holy city will fight to expel the occupier and preserve its Palestinian-Arab identity," said Hamas spokesperson Hazem Kassem. "This open-ended war with the occupier won't stop until our people's goal of liberating and restoring a Palestinian state whose capital is Jerusalem is achieved."
Muhammad Hamada, the spokesman for Hamas' Jerusalem branch, called on Palestinians to intensify attacks on Israelis with "every tool at their disposal" and said the "stabbing attack is a natural response to the occupier's escalation of crimes against our people in the West Bank and Jerusalem."
The terrorist attack came amid rising tensions in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria in recent weeks.
On Thursday, undercover Border Police officers operating in conjunction with the Shin Bet security agency arrested a suspect in connection with two stabbing attacks that occurred in one day in the village of Hizma on the outskirts of Jerusalem.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
