(Fox News) A Palestinian motorist rammed his car into a group of people waiting for a train in east Jerusalem Friday morning injuring seven people, including six Israeli soldiers, before being shot and wounded by guards, police said. Police spokeswoman Luba Samri described the assault as a “terror attack.”
The motorist plowed his car into the curb after running over the group of people. Police said the man then got out of his car with a knife and stabbed a pedestrian before he was shot. The injured and the motorist were taken to the hospital.
Police identified the attacker as a Palestinian man from east Jerusalem believed to be in his twenties. Police said certain attacks like these are difficult to prevent because they appear to be carried out by "lone wolf" assailants.
"The swift and determined response stopped the attack as it was beginning and prevented more innocents from being injured," said Moshe Edri, regional police commander. After the attack, police immediately cordoned off the area. The front of the attacker's vehicle was smashed and the windshield was cracked.
The attack comes at the same time as Israelis celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim. Police are booting security throughout the city and Jerusalem mayor Nir Barakat said celebrations will continue as planned. "We will not let terror disrupt our daily routine, and we will fight it without compromise," said Barkat. "I invite all residents of the country to celebrate Purim in Jerusalem and to support it."
The attack mirrored a spate of similar assaults on Israelis late last year amid heightened tensions over the most sensitive holy site in Jerusalem, revered by Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and by Jews as the Temple Mount.
