Israeli settlers injured in suspected Palestinian shooting attack in Sheikh Jarrah
Two Israeli settlers were wounded in a suspected shooting attack in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem on Tuesday morning.
The two men, aged 48 and 50, were leaving the Tomb of Simeon the Just when they were shot by a Palestinian man, according to police. They were immediately taken to hospitals in the city for treatment, with at least one of them reported to be in stable condition.
Following the incident, Israeli security forces conducted extensive searches in the area where the perpetrator was believed to have fled.
The Israeli police carried out searches in the homes of Palestinians in the neighbourhood and reportedly assaulted a number of young men. They also stormed a mosque, sparking anger and protests amongst local residents.
The police have found the gun used in the attack, an improvised submachine gun known as a Carlo, commonly found in the West Bank.
The Tomb of Simeon the Just is located within the Shimon HaTzadik settlement enclave in Sheikh Jarrah, where Israeli settlers first began occupying homes in the 2000s, following legal proceedings carried out by settler-affiliated real estate companies to evict the area's Palestinian residents.
Following the attack, the Hamas Jerusalem spokesperson issued a statement, welcoming the incident as a "natural reaction to the crimes of the occupation, especially ones in Jerusalem and in Al-Aqsa Mosque".
The spokesperson congratulated "resistance fighters" and called for East Jerusalem's Palestinians to protect the "hero" who carried out the attack and warned Israel over its "continued aggression".
The incident underscores the ongoing tensions in East Jerusalem, particularly in the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, where Palestinian residents are facing eviction by Israeli settlers.
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