Three people were killed and several others seriously hurt in a suspected terror attack in the central city of Elad on Thursday, medics said.
At least one of the wounded was in critical condition, and up to seven were hurt in the incident.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service reported the fatalities.
It said its medics were taking several other injured people to a hospital. Two were in serious condition, one was listed in moderate condition, and several others were in light condition, according to MDA.
According to police officials, Elad residents said two men passersby attacked at a park in the city.
One of the attackers used a firearm and the other had an ax or a large knife, witnesses said. MDA said the injuries did not appear to be from gunfire.
Police said officers launched a manhunt for the alleged attackers, closing off roads in the area. According to eyewitnesses, the two suspects fled in a vehicle.
Medics at the scene of a suspected terror attack in Elad, on May 5, 2022. (Magen David Adom)
Local authorities ordered residents of Elad to remain in their homes.
The attack came as tensions have risen sharply between Israel and the Palestinians in recent weeks against the backdrop of repeated terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank that left 16 others dead.
The army has stepped up its West Bank activities in an attempt to crack down on the spiraling violence. The ensuing raids sparked clashes that left at least 26 Palestinians dead, many of whom took part in the clashes, while others appeared to have been uninvolved civilians.
Following a deadly attack in the West Bank city of Ariel last Friday, the Hamas terror group vowed that it “will not be the last one.”
Earlier Thursday, Palestinians clashed with police on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Hamas had threatened to retaliate if Jewish visitors were allowed to “storm” the holy site.
Palestinians and Israeli forces have clashed repeatedly at the Temple Mount over the past few weeks. The violence echoed scenes from last year, when rioting at the site helped spark a war between Israel and Gaza-based terror groups led by Hamas.
Ever since the May 2021 war, Hamas, which seeks to destroy Israel, has threatened to fire rockets at Israel if it violated the organization’s “red lines” in Jerusalem. The terror group has hailed its “deterrence” against Israel in the contested capital as a key achievement of the war, which wrought widespread destruction in Gaza.
Hamas’s Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, said on Saturday that the terror group “will not hesitate to take any steps” if Israel “violates” Al-Aqsa Mosque.
